Chile: In Search of a Second Wind

The case considers the problem of diversifying Chile's economy, in particular its export industries, away from primary products and toward manufacturing. Starting with a recent debate around Chile's failure to attract a major investment by Intel to build a factory for the Pentium III, the case reviews Chile's economic performance in the last quarter-century, devoting particular attention to the following issues: (a) Whether the Chilean economy's heavy reliance on copper and other primary or first-transformation products ought to be a source of concern to policymakers (b) To what extent FDI could contribute to the economy's diversification, and (c) How recent policy debates around the need (or absence thereof) for a government-led development strategy tie in with traditional political debates in Latin America.