Chile joins Brazil in raising S.America's investment potential

Investing experts are predicting that Brazil will be joined by Chile in leading the way for new, profitable investment opportunities in South America.

The abundant natural resources in Brazil – including timber and minerals – as well as the planned work to give it a global quality infrastructure, a strong currency and excellent showing during the global recession, have made it an attractive prospect for wealth creation opportunities.

However, Chile's commodity-based economy – heavily dependent on exports such as minerals, food and timber – has been in a strong position to sustain itself during the recession. This has largely stemmed from the increasing demand for natural commodities from developing Asian nations.

Both Brazil and Chile have forged strong trade ties with China and other Far Eastern countries, where demand for timber, pulp and wood pellets for power stations is already high and swiftly increasing.

The Chamber of Commerce in Santiago has issued foreign investment projections for this year and are pointing to a range between US$15,000 and US$20,000 million.

A particular area of advancement for Chile is in the biotechnology sector. Transparent regulations and economic incentives has seen the country attract approximately US$170 million of foreign investment in the field, with more than 200 constituent companies and institutions.