MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Chile's overseas investment doubled in 2006

Chileans invested overseas during the first half of 2006 a total of 4.1 billion US dollars which is double the amount (two billion) of the same period a year ago, reported the Central Bank.

The monthly bulletin of the Chilean Central Bank shows that 3.1 billion US dollars was invested in finance, insurance, real estate and services with mining attracting 439 million US dollars.

Other sectors include retailing, 203 million US dollars; public utilities (electricity, water and gas) 169 million; manufacturing 97 million; construction 33 million; services 17 million; agriculture, livestock and forestry 8 million and transport, storage and communications 7 million.

North America is the region which most attracted Chileans investments and particularly United States with 3.5 billion US dollars. Europe follows with 876 million US dollars; Asia 68 million; Africa and Oceania 4 million. Regarding South America and in the first half of 2006, Chileans invested 6 million US dollars in Uruguay; 3 million each in Colombia and Ecuador and 2 million in Argentina.

Since the Chilean Central Bank begun monitoring and reporting overseas investments the total to June 2006 amounts to 54.5 billion US dollars with North America taking the lion's share 31 billion; Central America 8.6 billion; South America 7.7 billion; Europe 5.8 billion; Africa and Oceania 1.2 billion and Asia 202 million US dollars.