Chile Concha Y Toro concerned about strength of peso

By Anthony Esposito ,Dow Jones

SANTIAGO (Dow Jones)--The president of Chile's largest winemaker and exporter Vina Concha Y Toro SA (VCO, CONCHATOR.SN) expressed concern Monday about the strength of the peso versus the dollar, as export competitiveness is curtailed.

Despite an ongoing $12 billion currency market intervention program, the peso has crawled back to nearly pre-intervention levels on the back of broad dollar weakness, strong international copper prices and Chile's tightening monetary policy.

"We're concerned about the dramatic appreciation of the peso...it's something that affects all exporters, not only us in the wine business," Concha Y Toro's president Alfonso Larrain told reporters on the sidelines of a shareholders meeting.

Despite the Chilean peso's stubborn strength, Finance Minister Felipe Larrain reiterated last week that the government won't implement capital controls.

Also, Concha Y Toro, which recently acquired Brown-Forman Corp's. (BFA, BFB) Fetzer Vineyards in the U.S. for $238 million, will spend another $50 million in Chile this year to expand its production capacity, the company's president said.