Enade 2008: Sebastián Piñera predicts crisis will hit Chile hard

SANTIAGO.- Presidential pre-candidate Sebastián Piñera said today that the current economic crisis will hit the Chilean economy hard due to a drop in the prices of copper and exports, as well as a loss of trust and expectations within the national market.

During an interview with Emol TV, Piñera asserted that the Chilean economy was already facing a complicated situation before the financial crisis due to out-of-control inflation and high unemployment rates.

With regards to how the country should confront the difficult international scenario, Piñera stated that the government should be more frugal with public spending and propose the need to lower interest rates in order to prevent a situation like the one that took place during the Asian crisis of the late 90s.

Despite his somber diagnosis however, Piñera also said that the national economy is currently in good conditions to confront the crisis and explained that beginning in 2010, the country may be able to resume a strong economic growth trend.