<div><p>Chilean billionaire Sebastian Pinera was Monday celebrating his presidential election win, as stocks surged on expectations the conservative tycoon would usher in new, business-friendly policies.</p><p>Sunday's victory by Pinera spelled an end to the ruling leftwing Concertacion coalition that has governed Chile ever since the end of General Augusto Pinochet's dictatorship 20 years ago.</p><p>The billionaire, who owns a television station, a football club and a big stake in flagship airline LAN among many other interests, has promised to "open the window and let in fresh air" when his four-year term starts March 11.</p><p>The main IPSA index on Santiago's stock market jumped Monday in reaction to the election, and was 1.16 percent up at close to end of trading.</p><p>Pinera's AXXION holding company was one of the biggest gainers, soaring 12.4 percent.</p><p>LAN went up 1.27 percent. Pinera's 26-percent stake in the airline -- Latin America's biggest -- accounts for more than half his 1.2-billion-dollar fortune.</p><p>"The (share price) movements are closely tied with the election results," a report by the BCI broking firm said.</p><p>Pinera was declared the winner of Sunday's runoff against Concertacion's candidate, former president Eduardo Frei, after picking up 52 percent of the ballots to Frei's 48 percent.</p><p>Outgoing President Michelle Bachelet, who was constitutionally barred from seeking re-election, dropped by Pinera's Santiago mansion early Monday to congratulate him in a traditional breakfast meeting meant to show the smoothness of political transition.</p><p>Neither made any comment to reporters afterwards.</p><p>During the run-up to Sunday's poll, Bachelet had thrown her full weight behind Frei, narrowing Pinera's lead to a hair's breadth, but not by enough to guarantee Frei's victory.</p><p>Her tactics, notably raising conflict-of-interest questions about Pinera's many investments, nettled Pinera, who complained that Bachelet's "interference" was not fair.</p><p>He also bristled at critics' comparisons with Italy's wealthy media tycoon and prime minister, Silvio Berlusconi</p><p>Pinera has already set up a blind trust to manage most of his wealth at a distance.</p><p>He has also promised to divest his LAN holding, prompting much of the uptick in the airline's share price.</p><p>Late Sunday, in his victory speech, Pinera told 30,000 supporters that he would "break down the walls dividing us and build new bridges to bring us together."</p><p>He was expected, however, to maintain a social welfare program established by Bachelet which has wide approval in the population.</p><p>He was also unlikely to touch a government policy that makes a "rainy day" fund out of part of the export revenues from Chile's all-important copper mining industry.</p><p>Those two initiatives are credited with helping Chile come through last year's global financial crisis in relatively good shape.</p><p>Although Chile's economy shrank two percent last year -- its first contraction in a decade -- it is forecast to bounce back with growth of between 4.5 percent and 5.5 percent this year.</p><p>Copper prices have recovered after a slide during the crisis, and are predicted to reach 3.10 dollars per pound, one of the highest points ever.</p><p>Chile earns more than 36 billion dollars a year from the metal, and its state company Codelco is the biggest copper producer in the world.</p><p>Pinera has promised to take advantage of the returning boom to create one million jobs over his mandate.</p><p>One of his challenges, though, will be to pursue Bachelet's work in reducing Chile's vast rich-poor divide, which is the largest in Latin America after Brazil.</p><p>Observers predicted Chile would take a higher profile in the region now that it was one of the few Latin American countries with a rightwing government.</p><p>"Probably there will be a stronger attitude criticizing Cuba and (President Hugo) Chavez's Venezuela," said Ricardo Israel, a political science expert at the University of Chile.</p><p>Pinera's ideological ally, Colombian President Alvaro Uribe, said in his nod to Pinera's win that he rejected the "rightwing" and "leftwing" tags.</p><p>"I don't agree that Latin America can be divided into leftwing and rightwing governments.</p><p>"This was valid in the past when European leftwing ideas were brought in to combat Latin American dictatorships. But now it is a qualification that polarizes things."</p><img src="http://admatch-syndication.mochila.com/images/ad.gif?aid=67205944&bid=informcom" /></div><div id="copyright"><div>

Copyright 2010  <a href="http://www.afp.com/english/links/?pid=copyright">AFP Global Edition</a></div></div>