São Paulo – In December, the share of Brazilians who are optimistic regarding the country’s economic situation was 67.2%, 3.5% lower than in November and higher than in the same period of 2010 (64.6%). According to the Families Expectation Index (IEF) issued this Thursday (5th) by the Institute of Applied Economic Research (Ipea), 78.2% of families claimed to be in better financial situations now than a year ago, a higher rate than in the preceding month (74.7%).
The survey also revealed that 86.6% of families have positive expectations regarding their finance this year. Of those surveyed, 57.4% believe the time is ideal for purchasing consumer goods, whereas 39.2% believe now is not the time to go shopping.
According to the Ipea president, Márcio Pochmann, the optimism of Brazilian families is due to the fact that the country continues to grow, though at a lower rate, thus enabling an increase in job positions and higher income, especially among the lower social strata.
“Furthermore, December is a month in which people are paid the 13th month pay and the amount of temporary jobs increase, creating an expectation of continuity throughout the year of 2012,” said Pochmann.
He underscored that people with the highest education levels are the most optimistic, and those with the lowest levels are the most pessimistic. The figures show that among the optimistic, 73% hold university degrees, as against 63.2% in November. Among the pessimistic ones, 57.7% are uneducated, a rate lower than in the preceding month (59%). Negative expectations for the coming 12 months increased among the uneducated, from 26.4% in November to 30.3% in December.
The Ipea president also said the second half of last year was a time in which families decided to make adjustments pertaining to their indebtedness. Figures show that in December, 56.1% of families claimed to have no outstanding debt, a higher rate than in November (55.6%). “The increased interest rate last year somehow acted as an educational process so families would not use up as much credit as they had been using,” said Pochmann.
According to the figures, 92.3% of families do not plan on taking loans or seeking financing to purchase goods in the next three months. In November, the rate was 89.8%.
*Translated by Gabriel Pomerancblum
