Chilean stocks saw small gains on Friday as positive unemployment data boosted consumer-related shares, adding to optimism about strong copper prices and the overall economy.
The IPSA index of the top 40 stocks climbed 0.38 percent to 1,543.20 points and was up 2.6 percent on the week.
The broader market gauge IGPA gained 0.53 percent to close at 7,629.83.
Traders said eyes were on retailers after the government said unemployment in November-January was 7.4 percent, unchanged from the previous three-month period but lower than the 7.6 percent jobless rate a year earlier.
"Today the consumer sector stood out - Almacenes Paris, La Polar and Falabella - probably because of the unemployment figures released in the morning, which are key to determining the level of consumption that there will be this year," said Humberto Munoz, analyst with CB brokerage.
Stocks have flourished recently on glowing forecasts for Chile's economy and while prices of its top export, copper, are hovering near 8-1/2-year peaks.
Falabella, a department store chain that recently acquired home hardware store Sodimac to create a retail giant with stores in several countries, gained 2.51 percent to 1,220 pesos.
Its rival, Almacenes Paris, jumped 3.97 percent to 497 pesos. The smaller La Polar, which listed on the bourse five months ago, rose 3.85 percent to 675 pesos.
Leading telecoms firm Telefonica CTC Chile climbed 0.22 percent to 2,295 pesos, reversing Thursday's losses after President Ricardo Lagos said Chileans' public utility bills should become cheaper. The statement came as CTC awaits a government response to its request for a large increase in interconnection rates.
The Chilean peso gained slightly against the US dollar, tracking the euro as it has for several weeks now. Traders said the market is eyeing a European Central Bank meeting next week.
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