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Chilean exports maintained their good run in the January-August 2026 period, accumulating returns of USD 83.252 billion, according to the latest Monthly Foreign Trade Report from the Directorate of Studies of the Undersecretariat of International Economic Relations, prepared based on figures from the Central Bank of Chile and the National Customs Service. The data shows an increase of 19.1% (+USD 13.368 billion), which led shipments to exceed, for the first time, USD 80.000 billion for a January-August period, with highs in both mining and non-mining shipments.
During the period, mining accounted for 62.6% of the period's shipments, with USD 52.130 billion and an increase of 27.6% (+USD 11.289 billion). Although copper showed a 3.2% drop in August, it continued to show positive figures in the accumulated year, totaling USD 43.275 billion, representing a 19.3% increase compared to the same eight months of the previous year.
Lithium, for its part, practically tripled its returns, reaching USD 4.332 billion; and gold doubled its returns, up to USD 3.172 billion.
Non-mining exports reached a record of USD 31.123 billion, up 7.2% (+USD 2.079 billion) and accounted for 37.4% of national shipments. Within this group, the food industry reached a new high for the period with USD 9.457 billion (+3.6%), driven by salmonids, frozen raspberries, and the recovery of jack mackerel.
Metalworking, machinery and equipment (+15.2%) and seeds (+10.4%) also showed strong improvements. This performance was joined by the recent recovery of two sectors that have accumulated declines during the year. Fruit exports grew 18.1% in August, completing three consecutive months of expansion, with increased shipments of hazelnuts, kiwis, apples, pears, avocados, and clementines. Bottled wine, for its part, reached its highest monthly record in August 2026 (USD 128 million), with a year-on-year increase of 16.5%.
Service exports also marked an all-time high, with USD 2.413 billion and a growth of 16% (+USD 332 million), led by aircraft maintenance and repair, and by digital and business management services.
