By Sebastian Boyd March 12 (Bloomberg) — Chile plans to tap its copper savings funds and borrow in international debt markets to pay for an estimated $30 billion in reconstruction from the 8.8- magnitude earthquake that struck the country on Feb. 27. “We don’t have a definitive estimate, but estimates indicate that the damage caused by this earthquake could be close to $30 billion,” President Sebastian Pinera told reporters in Santiago today. Pinera plans to rewrite the 2010 budget to free up resources for a reconstruction fund, he said. The government will also tap its savings, he said. Chile has $11.3 billion invested overseas in an economic stabilization fund that the government can use to finance a budget deficit. Using money from the fund could mean selling dollars to buy pesos, boosting the Chilean currency. “We will study the possibility of contracting debts overseas,” Pinera said. “Chile has hardly any public sector debt.” The high price of Chile’s main export, copper, may also help pay for reconstruction, the president said. Pinera took office yesterday. To contact the reporter on this story: Sebastian Boyd in Santiago at sboyd9@bloomberg.net
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Chile May Tap Savings as Earthquake Losses Near $30 Billion, Pinera Says
