Peru's Economy: Mining, Agriculture, and the Pacific

Peru is one of the larger economies in South America and one of the world's largest mining producers. For American readers, the easiest way to picture it: Peru has about 34 million people — roughly the population of Texas — in a country slightly smaller than Alaska, stretching from the Pacific coast across the Andes into the Amazon basin. Peru is best known for being one of the world's top copper, silver, gold, and zinc producers, agricultural exports of grapes, blueberries, and avocados counter-seasonal to U.S. production, an open-trade policy with free-trade agreements covering most of its trade, and a long-running role as the heart of the ancient Inca civilization and a major tourism destination.

This is a plain-English tour written for American readers. For the U.S. picture, see The State of the U.S. Economy and the broader Economy hub. For other countries, see the country economies index.

How big is the Peruvian economy?

For example, Peru's recent annual GDP has run around PEN 1.0 trillion, or roughly $270 billion USD, according to the World Bank and the Peruvian statistics office, the National Institute of Statistics and Informatics (INEI). That makes Peru about one-ninetieth the size of the U.S. economy by output. GDP per person sits around $7,900 USD at official exchange rates — in the middle of the Latin American range, similar to Colombia and below Chile.

The official Peruvian numbers are published by INEI, and additional financial and macroeconomic statistics come from the central bank, the Central Reserve Bank of Peru (BCRP).

The biggest industries

Peru has a commodity-driven economy with a growing services and agricultural-export base. The main pillars:

• Mining — Peru is the world's second-largest copper producer (after Chile), one of the largest silver and zinc producers, and a major gold producer. Major firms include Antamina (BHP, Glencore, Teck), Cerro Verde (Freeport-McMoRan), Las Bambas (MMG), Southern Copper, and Yanacocha (Newmont). Mining typically accounts for about 60% of total exports.
• Agriculture and agro-exports — Peru has become one of the world's leading exporters of fresh blueberries, table grapes, asparagus, and avocados, with production concentrated in the irrigated coastal valleys. Counter-seasonal to U.S. production, Peruvian fresh produce fills U.S. shelves during the U.S. winter and spring.
• Fishing and fishmeal — Peru is one of the world's largest producers of fishmeal and fish oil, derived primarily from anchovy fisheries off the Pacific coast.
• Manufacturing — textiles (alpaca and pima cotton), food processing, chemicals, and metals processing.
• Tourism — Machu Picchu, the Sacred Valley, Cusco, and the Pacific coast draw substantial international visitors. Tourism is concentrated in the southern Andean region.
• Construction — substantial activity in housing, infrastructure, and mining-related construction.
• Financial services — banks like BCP (Banco de Crédito del Perú), BBVA Peru, and Interbank serve the growing domestic market.

Currency and the central bank

Peru uses the Peruvian sol (PEN). One U.S. dollar typically buys somewhere between PEN 3.6 and PEN 3.9, depending on the exchange rate. The sol is one of the more stable currencies in Latin America.

The Central Reserve Bank of Peru (BCRP) is independent and sets monetary policy and the benchmark policy rate. The BCRP targets inflation at 2% per year (with a ±1 percentage-point band), broadly in line with the U.S. Federal Reserve and other inflation-targeting central banks. The Peruvian inflation-targeting framework is widely considered one of the most credible in Latin America, and Peruvian inflation has been among the lowest and most stable in the region over the past two decades.

Trade with the United States

The U.S. is one of Peru's largest single trading partners. Total U.S.-Peru trade runs around $20 billion USD per year combined. Peru sells the U.S. copper, gold, fresh fruit and vegetables (blueberries, grapes, avocados, asparagus), zinc, textiles, and fishmeal. The U.S. sells Peru refined petroleum products, machinery, vehicles, electronics, and agricultural products. The U.S. side sits at the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative.

The U.S.-Peru Trade Promotion Agreement, in force since 2009, eliminated tariffs on most bilateral trade. China is typically Peru's largest single trading partner overall, anchored by Chinese demand for Peruvian copper.

Free-trade agreements and the Pacific orientation

Peru has one of the more extensive free-trade-agreement networks in Latin America, with bilateral or regional agreements covering most of its trade — including with the U.S., the EU, China, Japan, South Korea, and the Pacific Alliance partners (Chile, Colombia, Mexico). Peru is also a member of the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP). The Pacific orientation is a defining feature of Peruvian trade policy.

Combined with a credible inflation-targeting framework, an independent central bank, and prudent fiscal management over much of the past two decades, the Peruvian macroeconomic framework is one of the more institutionalized in Latin America — even amid recurring political turbulence.

Cost of living

Cost of living in Peru is moderate by international standards. Lima has higher prices than the rest of the country, particularly in better residential neighborhoods like Miraflores and San Isidro. Cusco has higher tourist-area prices but is otherwise inexpensive. Smaller coastal and Andean cities are notably cheaper.

How Peru's economy affects the U.S.

Peruvian copper feeds global supply chains for electrical wiring, electronics, and electric-vehicle production that the U.S. participates in. Peruvian gold contributes to U.S. jewelry and electronics supply chains. Peruvian fresh produce — particularly blueberries, grapes, asparagus, and avocados — fills U.S. supermarket shelves counter-seasonal to U.S. production. Peruvian alpaca and pima-cotton textiles supply premium segments of U.S. apparel. Peruvian-American remittances flow in both directions.

Regions and the coastal-Andes-Amazon pattern

Peru's economy is divided across three sharply different geographic zones. The coastal region — including Lima, the capital, plus Trujillo, Chiclayo, and other coastal cities — holds about half the population, the financial sector, the largest services concentration, the agro-export-oriented irrigated valleys, and the major Pacific ports. Lima Metropolitan Area alone produces nearly half of Peruvian GDP. The Andean highlands (sierra) hold most of the major mining operations — Cerro Verde near Arequipa, Antamina in Áncash, Las Bambas in Apurímac — plus traditional agriculture and a major tourism corridor through Cusco and the Sacred Valley. The Amazon (selva) in the east is sparsely populated and economically less developed, with oil and gas activity around Iquitos and Camisea, plus forestry and agriculture.

A note on the numbers

Numbers in this article change every quarter. Always check the latest from the World Bank Peru profile, the International Monetary Fund, the Central Reserve Bank of Peru, and the National Institute of Statistics and Informatics for the most current data.