Between January and September 2026, Chile recorded the largest trade surplus in its history, with a positive balance of US$25,721 million, according to Emol. The figure comes from the preliminary Monthly Foreign Trade Report of the Subsecretaría de Relaciones Económicas Internacionales (Subrei, Chile's Undersecretariat for International Economic Relations), prepared with data from the Banco Central (Chile's central bank) and the Servicio Nacional de Aduanas (National Customs Service).
A trade surplus is the positive difference between what a country sells abroad and what it buys. Think of a family that, over nine months, earned considerably more than it spent. This year, that difference exceeded the one for the same period of 2025 by US$10,512 million.
The result also surpassed the previous high, which had stood since 2007, when the balance reached US$20,373 million. In almost two decades, no year had come close to that mark.
Goods exports totaled US$93,837 million, up 18.5% year on year, and topped US$90 billion for the first time in a January-September period. Total trade, which adds exports and imports, reached US$166,985 million, 12.9% more than in 2025.
Mining accounts for much of the jump. Its shipments totaled US$58,873 million, growth of 25.7%, and represented 62.7% of everything Chile sold abroad. Of every ten dollars exported, more than six came from mining.
Copper contributed US$49,247 million, up 18.7%. Concentrates added up to US$31,565 million and cathodes to US$14,839 million. Prices helped: the metal averaged US$6.09 per pound during the period, a level the report describes as high.
Other minerals also grew. Lithium exports nearly tripled to US$4,745 million, and gold exports reached US$3,401 million, their highest figure for a comparable period.
China remained the main buyer, with US$31,089 million and a 9% increase. The United States came second, with US$15,967 million and growth of 21.3%. Both set all-time highs for the first nine months of the year.
Even so, 63.4% of the additional US$14,673 million that Chile exported compared with 2025 went to countries other than those two. India stands out, receiving Chilean shipments worth US$5,096 million, almost double the year before, with more copper, gold, iodine, fresh apples, wood pulp and lithium. Japan, South Korea and Switzerland also bought more.
In copper, India overtook Brazil to become the fifth-largest destination, after increasing its purchases by 101.3%. China, the United States, Japan and South Korea hold the top four spots.
"While we consolidate and deepen our presence in our main markets, such as China and the United States, we are at the same time reaching other markets with increasing strength," said the Undersecretary of International Economic Relations, Paula Estévez. She described the record as a positive signal for Chile.
Outside mining, exports totaled US$34,963 million, a high for the period and an increase of 8.2%. The food industry sold US$10,712 million, also a record, and salmon contributed 45% of that amount, with US$4,770 million, 8% more than in 2025.
The United States bought Chilean salmon worth US$1,975 million, 3% more despite the tariff environment. Fishing and aquaculture exceeded US$7,000 million for the first time in a January-September period, at US$7,453 million.
For household finances, the effect arrives through several channels. More dollars entering the country tend to support the peso, and higher mining sales raise tax revenue and activity in exporting regions. The report provides no estimates of those effects.
The report also shows that more companies are exporting: 8,029 firms sold goods abroad between January and September, 232 more than in 2025. Services exports reached a record US$2,718 million, including US$960 million in digital services, and the United States accounted for 53.6% of the latter.
