New Market Study, "Chile Mining Report Q4 2012", Has Been Published

Fast Market Research recommends "Chile Mining Report Q4 2012" from Business Monitor International, now available

by Bill Thompson

(WireNews+Co) - Boston, MA - 23 October 2012

We maintain our expectation that Chile's mining sector will grow in 2012 and 2013 albeit at a slower pace than we previously forecast. Major mining companies continue to advance several large projects in the face of potential delays due to rising costs and economic uncertainty. In recent quarters, we have revised our industry growth forecasts due to rising risks which we believe will delay mine projects. We now forecast Chile's mining sector to grow at 6.8% year-on-year (y-o-y) in 2013. With several projects scheduled to come online in 2014 and 2015, we expect these years to account for the largest proportion of growth. Over our 2012-2016 forecast period, we forecast sector growth to average 6.3% per annum.

View Full Report Details and Table of Contents (http://www.fastmr.com/prod/464455_chile_mining_report_q4_2012.aspx) (http://www.fastmr.com/prod/464455_chile_mining_report_q4_2012.aspx)

The Chilean mining sector will continue to rely on copper production for the foreseeable future. The large pipeline of copper projects and the country's global dominance in copper production make this the most likely scenario despite falling ore grades and more modest production growth. The importance of copper mining to Chile's economy cannot be overstated and we believe increasing global supply over the coming years will weigh on prices as the market loosens, impacting the Chilean economy. At present however, copper prices remain elevated by historical standards, supporting Chile's external accounts and encouraging mine workers to seek higher wages.

Precious Metals Key To Growth

Chile's mining sector will grow in part thanks to investment in gold mining, diversifying the sector away from copper. Slow growth in the US, worries over the Chinese economy and a deteriorating debt crisis in Europe will support gold prices and encourage new gold mine development.

Major companies, including Barrick Gold and Goldcorp, are developing large gold projects though rising costs have seen several mines delayed. Barrick Gold, Codelco and Antofagasta have all reported rising labor, fuel and material costs forcing the companies to increase pre-production expenditure estimates on mine projects. We forecast Chile's gold output will grow by an annual average rate of 1.9%, reaching 1.72moz (mn ounces) by 2016.

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