Global Utah Weekly

By the Governor’s Office of Economic Development The 8.8 magnitude earthquake that hit Chile on February 27th caused over 800 fatalities and millions of dollars in damages. This disaster will most certainly affect all of Chile as well as Utah companies doing business in Chile. The current focus of 2009 Utah exports (totalling $23,200,000) into Chile have been base metals and cements, industrial machinery and tools (including computers) and cutlery of base metal, all of which have comprised more than 65% of the total. Considering the country’s new urgency for reconstruction of its infrastructure, Utah has an advantage in supplying the Chilean demand due to its commercial ties to the country and its understanding of the business culture. Chile’s lamentable catastrophe may provide great growth opportunity for Utah companies catering to the country’s reconstruction needs. There may be some concerns regarding Chile’s ability to recover, comparing recent events to the earthquake that hit Haiti just this past January. There is no doubt that the damages caused by the earthquake will have a significant impact on the Chilean economy. However, according to John Rector from Western Oregon University, the natural disaster will do very little to slow down one of the fastest growing economies in Latin America. Not only does Chile have a “rainy day” multibillion-dollar fund, created earlier in the decade when copper prices reached all-time highs, but the mines that supply the country’s primary exports were also not affected by the massive tremors. Rector states that Chile’s challenge will be social recovery. He claims that the country’s less developed communities need jobs, housing, and education that the nation may not be able to provide due to its lacking social leadership. This further opens a market in which Utah businesses can invest: supplying resources for the development of human capital and social equality. Ultimately, Chile’s tragic circumstance may provide Utah companies the opportunity to further solidify trading relations with the nation, investing in the country’s infrastructural and social recovery needs.