London – On discussing the opening of seminar "Investing in Brazil", promoted by newspapers Financial Times and Valor Econômico, Brazilian president Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva said today (5th) that in 2010 Brazil should grow 5%. He also guaranteed that the country has overcome the international financial crisis, has returned to growth, and is inviting investors to make use of the opportunities offered by Brazil.
To the president, Brazil is living a "silent revolution", translated into a phase of recovery of self-esteem and an “almost magic moment” in its history. "We are tired of being the country of the future. After many promises during the twentieth century, we do not want to miss any opportunity in the 21st century."
To explain what this evolution is, Lula explained, improvising, the Light for All program (aiming providing electricity to all distant areas) and the creation of the special credit program (through which the government operates in areas that are little attractive to private capital).
Expansion of the supply of energy has greatly boosted the sale of electronic products and also those of industries connected to installations, whereas greater access to credit has allowed for the development of small businesses.
On the other hand, the chief of staff of Brazil, Dilma Rousseff, guaranteed to those participating in the seminar that Brazil has returned to economic growth and may become the fifth main economy in the world by 2016. In an interview to newspaper Financial Times, the president of Brazil stated that the country should become the fifth main economy on the planet in ten years.
During the seminar in London, which discussed investment in Brazil, the minister pointed out that the exploration of oil in the pre-salt layer is one more opportunity for foreign investors "at this successful moment the country is living."
At the same meeting, Finance minister Guido Mantega showed excessive concern with the appreciation of the Brazilian currency, the real, against the dollar. He said that the government wants to avoid "irrational exuberance" aiming to hold back the currency, avoiding a growth bubble.
*With information by Agência Brasil and Valor Online
