Argentina and Chile
A long border, mountain crossings and trade connect activities and communities on both sides of the Andes. Peace and integration treaties provide distinct frameworks. Logistics and market access depend on geographical and administrative conditions as well as political contacts.
Analysis reviewed: 2026-10-07 · Indicators updated: 2026-10-07From the peace agreement to integration
The 1984 Treaty of Peace and Friendship and the 2009 Treaty of Maipú are distinct milestones.
The Andes make logistics a bilateral issue
Physical integration and border committees feature in the Maipú framework.
Integration through project follow-up
The Treaty of Maipú includes mechanisms and areas for developing cooperation.
Bilateral indicators
Blank cells: data unavailable.
| Indicator | Value | Period |
|---|---|---|
| Goods trade | 7,931.13 M USD | 2025 · UN Comtrade |
| Goods: Argentina to Chile | 6,864.81 M USD | 2025 · UN Comtrade |
| Goods: Chile to Argentina | 1,066.32 M USD | 2025 · UN Comtrade |
| Services trade | ||
| Export share: Argentina to Chile | ||
| Export share: Chile to Argentina | ||
| Investment stock: Argentina in Chile | ||
| Investment stock: Chile in Argentina |
Definitions and sources
Trade adds both directions. Shares refer to the country’s total goods exports; investment is an accumulated stock, not an annual flow. Every figure retains the currency and period of its source. BEA positions are historical-cost estimates based on the immediate counterpart, not market values or investment by ultimate owner. ‘More than’ indicates a lower bound, not an exact amount. A recorded stock does not establish new activity or authorisation to operate under sanctions.
- Goods trade
- 2025 · UN Comtrade / 152 · Goods trade; full calendar year and a single reporter (152). Exports normally FOB and imports CIF according to the source; direction adjusted to the order of the profile. No services or mirror reports.
- Goods: Argentina to Chile
- 2025 · UN Comtrade / 152 · Goods trade; full calendar year and a single reporter (152). Exports normally FOB and imports CIF according to the source; direction adjusted to the order of the profile. No services or mirror reports.
- Goods: Chile to Argentina
- 2025 · UN Comtrade / 152 · Goods trade; full calendar year and a single reporter (152). Exports normally FOB and imports CIF according to the source; direction adjusted to the order of the profile. No services or mirror reports.
Country comparison
Period and source beside each figure · est. = estimate by the stated institution.
| Indicator | Argentina | Chile |
|---|---|---|
| Nominal GDP | 683.1 billion USD2025 · WB | 357.37 billion USD2025 · World Bank |
| GDP per capita | 14,898.09 USD2025 · WB | 17,994.59 USD2025 · World Bank |
| GDP growth | 4.37 %2025 · WB | 2.46 %2025 · World Bank |
| Policy interest rate | No single rate · BCRA | |
| Inflation · annual average | 41.9 %IMF est.Annual average · 2025 · IMF | 4.21 %Annual average · 2025 · World Bank |
| Inflation · latest year-on-year figure | 33.5 %Year-on-year · Aug. 2026 · INDEC | 4.1 %Year-on-year · 2026-08 · INE Chile |
| Unemployment | 7.15 %ILO est.2025 · WB | 8.97 %ILO est.2025 · World Bank |
| Budget balance (% of GDP) | -0.4 %IMF est.2025 · IMF | -2.8 %IMF est.2025 · IMF |
| Gross public debt (% of GDP) | 80.3 %IMF est.2025 · IMF | 41.8 %IMF est.2025 · IMF |
| Current account balance (% of GDP) | -1.11 %2025 · WB | -1.22 %2025 · World Bank |
| Population | 45,851,3782025 · WB | 19,859,9212025 · World Bank |
| Area | 2,780,400 km²2023 · BM / FAO | 757,245 km²2023 · World Bank |
| Military expenditure | ||
| Military expenditure (% of GDP) |
Definitions, dates and sources
Blank cells are not zero. Average annual inflation and the latest year-on-year figure appear in separate rows: they are not the same measure. Every annual indicator retains its reference year; when the years differ, the figures are identified as not directly comparable. When a figure is unavailable from the World Bank, an annual IMF estimate is used and identified as such. The latest year-on-year figure is the latest official release verified as of 7 October 2026. This includes advance releases marked as provisional. Mexico may have a fortnightly figure before the full month is published; it is not automatically compared with a monthly figure. The publication date is retained in each source’s details; it does not replace the observation period or the annual average. Policy rates carry their own dates and represent different instruments. Spain and France share the ECB rate. Balances are positive for surpluses and negative for deficits. The IMF may use fiscal years; unemployment retains each source’s definition (ILO estimates, IMF WEO or PCBS), as stated in the details. For Palestine, debt and the fiscal balance cover central government and retain the PCBS definition; they are not presented as consolidated general government. These are economic magnitudes, not measures of relationship quality.
Area retains each source’s territorial coverage; it does not determine sovereignty or effective control. Canada uses an archived national geographic reference. Military expenditure retains the 2024 SIPRI sample distributed by the World Bank: the amount and percentage of GDP use that same definition, which differs from NATO’s. It is not an approved budget or a 2026 figure. Information from the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI). Military expenditure database · Terms of use0
Indicators reviewed: 2026-10-07. Each source retains its original access date; this review does not turn all the data into 2026 observations. Figures may be revised.
- Nominal GDP
- Current USDArgentina: 2025 · World BankChile: 2025 · World Bank · Official World Bank series; observation period, not download date.
- GDP per capita
- Current USD per personArgentina: 2025 · World BankChile: 2025 · World Bank · Official World Bank series; observation period, not download date.
- GDP growth
- Annual real change (%)Argentina: 2025 · World BankChile: 2025 · World Bank · Official World Bank series; observation period, not download date.
- Policy interest rate
- Central bank instrument (%)Argentina: The BCRA abandoned the concept of a single monetary-policy rate under the new monetary-aggregates framework. It is not replaced with TAMAR, BADLAR, court interest rates or the last historical rate. · Central Bank of the Argentine Republic
- Inflation · annual average
- Average annual change in headline CPI (%)Argentina: 2025 · Annual average change in headline CPI (%) · IMF — World Economic Outlook · IMF est. · WEO estimate; not the year-on-year change for December or August 2026. · Alternative official source; verified 2026-10-07Chile: 2025 · Annual average change in the CPI (%) · World Bank · Official World Bank series; observation period, not download date.
- Inflation · latest year-on-year figure
- Headline CPI relative to the same period of the previous year (%); monthly or fortnightly frequency statedArgentina: 2026-08 · Change in headline CPI from the same month of the previous year (%) · Argentina INDEC · Published: 2026-09-10 · Original INDEC national report; replaces the previous link to its social-media publication without changing the value. Not the monthly change (1.7%) or cumulative change (21.3%).Chile: 2026-08 · Headline CPI; change from the same month of the previous year · INE Chile · Twelve-month headline CPI change; not the 0.6% monthly change or the 3.6% cumulative change in the year.
- Unemployment
- % of the labour force; definition used by the stated institutionArgentina: 2025 · World Bank · ILO est.Chile: 2025 · ILO modelled estimate, percentage of the labour force · World Bank · ILO est. · Official World Bank series; observation period, not download date.
- Budget balance
- General government (% of GDP)Argentina: 2025 · IMF — World Economic Outlook · IMF est.Chile: 2025 · IMF · IMF est. · IMF WEO general-government estimate. Retains the source’s fiscal year when it differs from the calendar year.
- Gross public debt
- General government (% of GDP)Argentina: 2025 · IMF — World Economic Outlook · IMF est.Chile: 2025 · IMF · IMF est. · IMF WEO general-government estimate. Retains the source’s fiscal year when it differs from the calendar year.
- Current account balance
- % of GDPArgentina: 2025 · World BankChile: 2025 · World Bank · Official World Bank series; observation period, not download date.
- Population
- PeopleArgentina: 2025 · World BankChile: 2025 · World Bank · Official World Bank series; observation period, not download date.
- Area
- Total area in km²; territorial coverage of the sourceArgentina: 2023 · Total area, including inland waters; source's territorial coverage · World Bank · FAOChile: 2023 · World Bank · Official World Bank series; observation period, not download date.
- Military expenditure
- Current USD per year; SIPRI series
- Military expenditure (% of GDP)
- Percentage of GDP; SIPRI definition, not NATO’s definition
Other data specific to this relationship
What they buy and sell
Documented selection, not an exhaustive list. Cells without a figure do not mean zero value; some products are identified without a verified amount.
Argentina to Chile
| Product or sector | Value / share |
|---|---|
| Crude oil | |
| Natural gas in gaseous form | |
| Maize | |
| Pickup trucks |
Chile to Argentina
| Product or sector | Value / share |
|---|---|
| Hass avocados | |
| Refined copper wire | |
| Salmon | |
| Liquefied natural gas |
Connections between people
Border crossings and local cooperation connect communities and travellers alongside the relationship between national administrations. [3]
Residents, study and travel
Blank cells: data unavailable. Each measure retains its definition and period.
| Indicator | Value | Period / source |
|---|---|---|
| Residents from Argentina living in Chile | ||
| Residents from Chile living in Argentina | ||
| Study and training: Argentina in Chile | ||
| Study and training: Chile in Argentina | ||
| Academic stays: Argentina in Chile | ||
| Academic stays: Chile in Argentina | ||
| Travel: Argentina to Chile | ||
| Travel: Chile to Argentina |
What each figure measures
Residents are counted by nationality and the coverage of the stated register, not as people born in the other country or as new arrivals in one year. PERE includes dual nationals and people born outside Spain. Study with OPT and stays carrying academic credit are different measures. Travel may include several visits by the same person; FRONTUR arrivals require an overnight stay, whereas the Canadian survey includes day visits. These figures are neither added together nor automatically compared across directions.
Mobility data added or reviewed: 2026-10-07. Reference periods may be earlier.
Underlying ties
History, institutions and long-standing issues.
From the peace agreement to integration
The 1984 Treaty of Peace and Friendship and the 2009 Treaty of Maipú are distinct milestones. The first belongs to the settlement of a border conflict; the second develops cooperation and integration. The presidential declaration on Maipú places institutions and projects within that evolution. Current cooperation is not treated as eliminating all historical differences, nor is the settlement of a dispute confused with the completion of all proposed infrastructure. [1] [4]
The Andes make logistics a bilateral issue
Physical integration and border committees feature in the Maipú framework. Crossings, transport and administrative coordination affect trade and travellers. Geography makes the conditions and capacity of each route important: a goods figure does not by itself explain journey times or port access. The treaty offers a framework for cooperation, but projects and services require their own operational data and dates. [1]
A regional framework for trade
ACE 35 organises trade between Mercosur and Chile, with additional instruments and agreements that extend its coverage. Argentina participates in that regional framework and also has a bilateral integration relationship with Chile. Rules on origin and products matter to businesses; participating in an agreement does not mean that every good has identical conditions or that all border formalities disappear. [2]
Annual data without mixing periods
INDEC publishes 2025 goods trade by partner, with imports and exports from the Argentine perspective. The profile retains that annual coverage where values have been extracted and does not mix December with January–December. One reporter's data can differ from the other's because of valuation, timing and recording. Selecting a consistent source avoids adding two reports of the same movement as two separate exchanges. [3]
Recent developments
Recent developments and latest available data · Reviewed: 2026-10-07
Integration through project follow-up
The Treaty of Maipú includes mechanisms and areas for developing cooperation. Distinguishing its legal validity from the delivery of a specific project helps explain the relationship without presenting every planned work as completed. The border dimension also affects communities, tourism and services. Each indicator's period remains visible, because mobility, trade and infrastructure decisions are not necessarily updated at the same pace. [4]
What recorded goods show
In 2025, recorded goods trade was 7,931.13 million USD. Shipments from Argentina to Chile were 6,864.81 million USD, and those in the reverse direction were 1,066.32 million USD. A single reporter is used for both directions. The difference between these flows describes the goods balance in that source, not the entire economic balance: services, affiliate activity and investment have separate measures. [5]
Milestones and consequences
Sources and data
Periods and scope of the figures
Each figure retains its period, currency, definition and source. Blank cells are not zero. Policy documents are distinguished from statistical results, and projects under way from announcements.
- Treaty of Maipú: presidential declaration
Argentina's Ministry of Foreign Affairs · Institutional source · Accessed: 2026-10-07
- Mercosur–Chile agreement
Argentina's Ministry of Foreign Affairs · Institutional source · Accessed: 2026-10-07
- Argentina's trade in 2025
Argentina INDEC · Institutional source · Accessed: 2026-10-07
- Text of the integration treaty
Argentina's treaty register · Institutional source · Accessed: 2026-10-07
- 2025 TOTAL X/M; reporter=152; partner=32; 24 uncapped records
UN Comtrade / 152 · Institutional source · Accessed: 2026-10-07
- Products in Chile–Argentina bilateral trade, 2025
SUBREI Chile · Institutional source · Accessed: 2026-10-07
Additional sources on products and human connections
- SUBREI Chile
2026-10-07 · Accessed: 2026-10-07.