SANTIAGO, May 20 (Reuters) - Chile's economy expanded 1.9% in the first quarter of 2024 from the previous three months, data from the country's central bank showed on Monday, slightly below the 2.0% increase expected by economists polled by Reuters.
Gross domestic product (GDP) in the world's largest copper producer rose 2.3% on a yearly basis, while economists expected a 2.5% jump.
Growth in the January-March period was broad based, the central bank said in a statement, with sectors such as mining and transportation contributing to the positive results on both an annual and quarterly basis.
Domestic demand was up 2% year-on-year in the period, it noted, thanks to increased consumption and investments.
Chile's government had earlier this month bumped up its GDP growth forecast for this year to 2.7% from 2.5%, as the central bank continues to cut interest rates despite inflation receding more slowly than initially expected.
The monetary authority has so far reduced its benchmark rate to 6.5% from a cycle-high of 11.25% in late 2022, and market participants expect it to announce a fresh 50-basis-point cut on Wednesday after a 75-basis-point reduction last month. (Reporting by Fabian Andres Cambero and Peter Frontini; Editing by Gabriel Araujo and Emelia Sithole-Matarise)
