TUESDAY, MAY 13, 2014
BRASILIA–Brazil’s World Cup won’t see any beverage price increases, the country’s Finance Minister Guido Mantega said Tuesday.
The government has said that taxes on beverages haven’t kept up with price increases in the last two years and need to be updated.
The tax hike was expected to happen before the monthlong soccer tournament that begins June 12, as Brasilia faces pressure to improve public finances and any extra revenue can help.
But after meeting with beverage sector officials, the minister told reporters that the adjustment will wait until after the World Cup, for which Brazil is expecting to receive some 600,000 foreign tourists.
“Only three months from now we will have an increase,” Mr. Mantega said. He also said, without giving details, that the adjustment will happen with small increments over time.
He said that industry officials agreed to keep their prices stable at least until after the tournament, in exchange for the tax postponement.
Brazil is struggling to reduce consumer-price increases. Annual inflation is now at 6.3%, above the official target of 4.5%.