São Paulo – The Focus Bulletin issued this Monday (26th) by the Brazilian Central Bank indicates that inflation should be up 6.99% and the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) will likely grow by a meagre 0.13% this year in Brazil. The bulletin contains the results of a weekly poll of financial institutions conducted by the monetary authority.
Just like in the past weeks, the market’s perception of the Brazilian economy has continued to worsen. Last week, the Focus Bulletin already pointed to 6.67% growth in inflation and 0.38% growth in the GDP in 2015. The latest estimates indicate that prices should be higher than the Central Bank’s target of 4.5% per annum, allowing for two percentage points up or down.
Expectations regarding the trade balance have also worsened. Previously, the market was expecting a US$ 5 billion surplus by the end of the year. Now, a US$ 4.5 billion surplus is expected. On the other hand, the foreign direct investment (FDI) forecast has climbed from US$ 58.2 billion to US$ 60 billion. The exchange rate expectation has remained unchanged, at R$ 2.80 for US$ 1, as did the interest rate, at 12.5%.
*Translated by Gabriel Pomerancblum
