In an effort to boost Chile's struggling middle class during the coronavirus pandemic, President Sebastian Pinera on Sunday announced a comprehensive $1.5 billion stimulus package of low-interest loans, rental subsidies and the ability to defer mortgage loan payments for up to six months.

“The coronavirus pandemic ... is hitting our middle class hard,” Pinera said in a televised address. Unemployment has jumped to 11%, with lockdown policies causing the suspension of 650,000 employment contracts.

The new stimulus measure comes after the government in mid-June announced a two-year, $12 billion stimulus.

Chile's coronavirus emergency packages had prompted ratings agency Moody’s to express concern about the country's debt levels.

“We were thinking that the debt was going to continue its gradual increase, and now that it is going to be much more abrupt,” analyst Ariane Ortiz-Bollin said in a webinar in mid-June.

“That rhythm is a concern from a credit point of view, not necessarily the level at which it is reaching but the rate at which the debt is increasing.”

Chile has been hit hard by the coronavirus. Santiago, the capital and most populated city, is under a strict lockdown, with its seven million residents only permitted to leave their homes a few times a week. Violators of the lockdown measures could face jail time.

Health Minister Oscar Enrique Paris said Sunday that Chile will not ease the restrictions anytime soon. “We won’t run any risks,” Paris said. “We will be extremely prudent.”

Paris became Chile’s latest health minister in mid-June, replacing kidney-specialist Jaime Manalich, who had been criticized for not promoting a comprehensive lockdown policy and for pushing a controversial “immunity passport” initiative.

Chile, which has a population of roughly 18 million, has the sixth-highest number of coronavirus cases in the world, according to Johns Hopkins University. As of 4:20 p.m. ET, Chile has 291,847 coronavirus cases and a death toll of 6,192.

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