Brasília – The Brazilian Central Bank revised down its economic growth estimate for this year, from 2.6% to 1.6%, as per its Inflation Report made public this (28) in Brasília. The forecast is slightly stronger than the financial market’s 1.55% estimate. Both projections have been on downward paths for the last few weeks.
According to the Central Bank, the more modest estimate is due to the “weakening” of economic activity early on in the year, the accommodation of corporate and consumer confidence indices, and the impact of the trucker strike in late May.
The agricultural GDP growth forecast climbed to 1.9%, up from an expected 0.3% contraction as of March, and in the wake of an all-time high in 2017 at 13% growth. “The improved projection is due to a better-than-expected result in quarter one and to repeated improvements in prognoses regarding annual agricultural output,” the Central Bank report reads.
The industry GDP growth forecast changed down from 3.1% to 1.6%. Retail and services are now seen growing by 1.3%, down from a 2.4% projection as of March.
Translated by Gabriel Pomerancblum
