Brasília – Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) in Brazil totalled US$ 45.1 billion in 2008, a historic record in the Brazilian Central Bank (BC) series, which started being recorded in 1947. The record figure corresponds to growth of 30.3% in comparison with 2007. Despite the worsening of the economic crisis at the end of the year, in December FDI reached US$ 8.1 billion.
To the head of the Economic Department at the BC, Altamir Lopes, the figures show that foreign investors still trust in the country. "With regard to investors concerned with the medium and long term and with production, I would say that confidence remains," said Lopes.
"These FDI flows are generally applied to production and are funds for medium and long term projects that come to stay in the Brazilian economy. Therefore, investor confidence in the country, with regard to the medium and long run, is very great," he added.
According to Lopes, in January the total has already reached US$ 2.1 billion. "They are meaningful resources and, more important than that, are spread throughout several sectors. There is no significant concentration of these flows, which shows that credibility is spread."
According to the BC, net transfers abroad totalled US$ 4 billion in December, 17.7% over the same period in 2007. In the accumulated result for the year, the value was US$ 40.6 billion, growth of 38.5% in comparison with the previous year.
In December, the balance of payments presented US$ 5.6 billion. The current transactions were also US$ 2.9 billion negative in the month. In the year, there has also been a current account deficit of US$ 28.3 billion, equivalent to almost 1.7% of the Gross Domestic Product, as against a surplus of US$ 1.6 billion, or 0.12% of GDP in 2007.
*Translated by Mark Ament
