bank of chile. figure 10 economic perception ( diffusion indices, percent ) business confidence consumer confidence brazil chile u. s. japan jul. china mexico eurozone jul. s. korea jul. brazil china u. s. mexico jul. s. korea chile japan eurozone ( 1 ) s. korea is anchored in 100. ( 2 ) series for japan, the eurozone and s. korea anchored in 50. other series, indices with base january 2007 = 100. for chile, adimark's ipec and icare / universidad adolfo ibanez indices. sources : adimark, bloomberg and icare / universidad adolfo ibanez.

rodrigo vergara : chile – economic outlook speech by mr rodrigo vergara, governor of the central bank of chile, at seminars held during the annual meeting of the inter american development bank, montevideo, uruguay, 12 march 2012. * * * i thank luis oscar herrera, enrique orellana and tatiana vargas for helpful comments. i would like to thank you for inviting me to present our views on chile ’ s economic situation at this conference. these last years have been particularly challenging for policymakers worldwide. periodically we must make decisions in an uncertain environment, weighing the costs and risks of alternative scenarios. for this reason, we welcome opportunities for meetings and discussions such as this, as they allow us to communicate our views in greater detail, as well as to hear other opinions. a better understanding of our decisions strengthens the effectiveness of our policies. more than four years have elapsed since the onset of the financial crisis that triggered the great recession. nonetheless, we are still handling its legacy, experiencing periodic episodes of financial stress that will likely continue for some time. the situation in the eurozone is complex, due to the interaction among fiscal, financial and macroeconomic vulnerabilities. from a historical viewpoint, growth perspectives for developed countries are weak. the outlook for emerging economies is noticeably better, although we are witnessing a slowdown whose pace is difficult to assess, particularly for china. additionally, we are confronting new risks, in the face of international tensions related to iran ’ s nuclear situation and its impact on the oil market. these sources of uncertainty are beyond our control. therefore, our role as policymakers in emerging countries is to preserve flexibility and space for policies that will enable us to respond to and buffer the financial and real effects that those risks pose on our economies. over the last years we have gained credibility, flexibility and space to implement a macroeconomic and financial policy framework that will help us smooth out the economic cycle. this framework rests on four pillars. first, monetary policy management is based on a flexible inflation - targeting regime, conducted by an autonomous central bank and supported by a floating exchange rate system. second, a fiscal policy that is accountable and predictable thanks to a structural balance rule. the significant amount of savings accumulated during the run - up of copper prices was a crucial factor in bolstering the resilience of the chilean economy and in providing a countercyclical fiscal boost. third, a high degree of commercial and financial integration with the rest of the world.