09:47 | Lima, oct. 19.
Leading indicators of economic activity in Peru point to sustained momentum in the country’s non-primary sectors, particularly in household consumption, the Peruvian Institute of Economics (IPE) noted.
In this regard, the IPE highlighted that electricity demand grew by 7.1% in September (up from 6.7% in August). This was driven by regulated users—households and small businesses—whose consumption rose by 10.3%, marking the fourth consecutive month of double-digit growth. To a lesser extent, the mining sector also contributed, with a 1.7% increase.
Furthermore, noted that the BBVA Research "Big Data" consumption index grew by 9.3% in September, maintaining a strong, near-double-digit pace, fueled by increased use of bank cards for tourism and household purchases.
Performance
The IPE also pointed out that the Peruvian economy grew in August, driven by the dynamism of its non-primary sectors. Peru’s GDP grew by 3.23% year-on-year in last August, a slight deceleration from the 3.6% growth recorded the previous month.
The IPE explained that this growth stemmed from non-primary activities—primarily commerce, services, and construction—whereas primary sectors declined for the seventh consecutive month, largely due to a contraction in mining and hydrocarbons.
From January till August 2026, the economy has accumulated 3.1% growth compared to the same period in 2025.
Non-primary GDP grew by 4.2% in August of this year (down from 4.7% in July), driven mainly by sectors linked to consumption (3.9%). In particular, the commerce sector grew by 6.9%—a rate similar to the previous month (6.8%)—driven by vehicle sales (25.7%), retail sales (5.3%), and wholesale sales (4.9%), the latter was bolstered by increased sales of fuels, metals, and construction materials.
Within the services sector, GDP for the accommodation industry expanded by 7.4%, while the restaurant sector saw only a modest 1.1% increase.
Additionally, the construction sector grew by 10.3%, up from 9.9% in July. This performance was driven by a strong surge in public works (19.3%), particularly those led by municipalities (26.3%) and the national government (18.4%).
Furthermore, domestic cement consumption rose by 7.6% in August of this year, supported by projects such as industrial plants, mining facilities, and multi-family housing developments.
Meanwhile, the primary sector’s GDP fell by 0.8%—a smaller contraction than in the previous month (-1.1%). The decline in mining and hydrocarbons offset the rebound in growth seen within the agriculture and primary manufacturing sectors.
In the mining and hydrocarbons sector, production fell by 5.5%, shaving 0.7 percentage points off the monthly GDP growth. Specifically, metallic mining contracted by 6.1%, primarily due to a drop in copper production (-5.3%)—stemming from lower ore grades (the concentration of mineral within the extracted material) at the Antapaccay mine, maintenance work at the Toromocho mine, and reduced output of zinc (-28.1%) and gold (-0.9%).
These declines could not be offset by the increased production of molybdenum (12.5%) and iron (9.2%). In the hydrocarbons sector, which saw a 1.4% decline in its GDP for August, an increase in natural gas production (9%) partially offset the drop in the production of crude oil (-10.9%) and natural gas liquids (-3.2%).
Agriculture and Livestock
In contrast, the agriculture and livestock sector grew by 3.4% this past August, driven by growth in the agricultural segment (4.6%).
The IPE (Peruvian Institute of Economics) noted that this result was primarily due to a nearly 30% increase in blueberry production—a consequence of early harvests prompted by high temperatures linked to the El Niño phenomenon, which is expected to negatively impact crop yields in the coming months.
There were also increases in the harvests of paddy rice (4.5%), potatoes (2.7%), and yellow hard corn (12.3%); conversely, production fell for olives (97.4%), asparagus (6.7%), and sugarcane (9.9%).
Meanwhile, the El Niño phenomenon continued to affect the fishing sector, which saw a 17% decline. At the same time, primary manufacturing grew by 18.5%, bolstered by the refining of non-ferrous metals (89.9%).
El Niño Phenomenon
According to the IPE, the El Niño phenomenon has emerged as the primary risk to the Peruvian economy. As of September 28, the ENFEN commission warned that the probability of an "extraordinary" coastal El Niño event through December exceeds 80%.
The climatic conditions brought on by El Niño have intensified: as of October 7 of this year, sea surface temperature anomalies off the northern coast—which rose by 5.2°C—reached their second-highest weekly level recorded since 1981.
This will continue to impact primary economic activities. In October, the IPE warned that the impact of an exceptionally severe "Coastal El Niño" (Niño Costero) would reduce GDP growth by approximately 0.9 and 1.2 percentage points in 2026 and 2027, respectively.
(END) NDP / SDD / JJN / MDV
Publicado: 19/10/2026