BanRep’s inflation concerns, Chile votes (again)

We warned a few weeks ago that Colombia’s central bank (BanRep) was too sanguine on inflation risks, but hawkish comments this week show that policymakers’ views on inflation are shifting towards our own. Elsewhere, the second attempt to rewrite Chile’s constitution is gathering pace, with a vote this Sunday to elect members of the Constitutional Council. This new charter will be subject to greater constraints than the previous re-write effort. But we still think the process will entail larger social welfare provision, wider budget deficits and a higher public debt ratio.