SANTIAGO, July 28 -- Chilean Mining Minister Aurora Williams said on Friday the government was upgrading its price projections for copper in 2017, from 2.60 to 2.64 U.S. dollars a pound on the world market.

The prices for copper, Chile's main export product, in the year of 2018, were also adjusted, up from 2.60 to 2.68 dollars per pound.

"The rise in 2017 is due in part to the improved performance of China's economic indicators, which surpassed market forecasts," Williams said at a press conference.

China's economy continued steady expansion in the first half of this year with the GDPup 6.9 percent year on year, according to the latest data released by Chinese authorities. The reading is well above the government's target for the year of 6.5 percent.

Another factor was lower expectations that the U.S. Federal Reserve will increase its benchmark interest rate more than once in the second half of the year, she said.

Meanwhile, Sergio Hernandez, the executive vice president of the Chilean Copper Commission (Cochilco), said that global copper demand in 2017 was expected to reach 23.6 million tons, or 1.5 percent more than in 2016.

"In the second half of the year, Cochilco expects foundries that were under maintenance in China to begin operating, a reduction in the availability of scrap metal, a recovery in inventories and greater stability in economic growth, which will lead to a recovery in copper demand," said Hernandez at the press conference.

In 2018, global copper demand is expected to reach 24 million tons.

Chile's economy has slowed down since 2013, in part due to falling prices for its main export.