Santiago Chamber of Commerce forecasts lower labor market during 2008

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SANTIAGO.-  The Santiago Chamber of Commerce (SCC) has forecasted a decrease in the labor market for 2008, mainly due to the low economic growth rate expected.  The SCC also estimates that the Chilean economy will generate just over 140 thousand jobs this year — some 20 thousand less than in 2007.

Despite the lower amounts of jobs however, the unemployment rate is expected to experience a slight decrease, reaching approximately 6.8% (compared to 7% during 2007).  The small drop is due to an anticipated increase of 2% in the labor force – a figure which, according to the SCC, falls just below the amount of new jobs available. 

During 2007, the economy created a total of 164 million new jobs, allowing for a 60% increase in the amount of positions generated when compared to 2006 (104 thousand).

According to the SCC, real salaries will balance out the higher expansion rate seen in 2007 and will move towards more stable levels in the medium-term.