Resume

With a positive economic scenario, Henrique Meirelles revised upward expectations of growth in Brazil

Faced with the resumption of growth and rising confidence, the Brazilian economy is expected to grow more than expected in this and next year. Data from the Ministry of Finance point to a Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth of 1.1% in 2017 and 3% in 2018.

Initial forecasts indicated a more moderate growth of 0.5% and 2%, respectively. The figures were released on Thursday (14) by Finance Minister Henrique Meirelles and by Secretary of Economic Policy Fabio Kanczuk.

"There is a very large increase in confidence that has also influenced the economic trajectory this year, as a result of fiscal control, approval of the spending ceiling, approval of reforms in general and all discussions underway," said the minister. , during a press conference.

According to Meirelles , this set of factors contributed to increased confidence in the economy. With the fall in inflation and interest, companies recovered and families started to consume again. In the third quarter of this year, Gross Domestic Product (GDP) - which is the sum of all wealth produced by the country - grew 1.4% in comparison with the same period last year. For the minister, a clear demonstration that the crisis was behind.

Reform of Social Security

During the interview, Meirelles also reinforced the need to approve Social Security reform as a way to consolidate the growth estimate and generate positive effects in the Brazilian economy. He indicated that the forecasts may change depending on the completion of the change in social security rules.

"To the extreme of the hypothesis that the reform will not be approved at the beginning of next year, it will certainly have a negative impact [on the economy]. Difficult to measure how much, "warned Meirelles.

In recent days, the Government of Brazil, businessmen and parliamentary leaders have reinforced the importance of approving the Social Security reform, which is currently being analyzed in the Chamber of Deputies. The measure is considered essential to eliminate privileges and prevent public accounts from collapsing within the next few years. 

Source: Government of Brazil