Brasília – The Brazilian Central Bank (BC) revised up the forecast on the growth of the Brazilian economy this year from 0.5%, according to the June forecast, to 0.7%, according to the Inflation Report released this Thursday (21). “The positive review reflects especially the performance of the GDP (Gross Domestic Product) in Q2, above the average set by the market’s expectations,” says the report.
In the forecast review, the GDP growth is driven by the agricultural sector. The forecast for the yearly growth of the agricultural sector went from 9.6% to 12.1%. The forecast for the expansion of the industrial activity went from a 0.3% growth to a 0.6% decline, reflecting, mainly, the weaker performance of the civil construction sector.
According to the report, the services sector should register a slightly improved performance than previously expected (growth of 0.1% in comparison to the forecast of a 0.1% decline).
The BC also expects an increase in the consumption of households of 0.4%. The previous forecast was for it to remain the same. Regarding investments, the forecast pointing to a decline of the Gross Fixed Capital Formation (GFCF) went from 0.6% to 3.2%, “reflecting, especially, the weak performance of the civil construction sector and the significant decline of imports of capital goods.”
For 2018, the BC expects a growth of 2.2%.
*Translated by Sérgio Kakitani
