MONDAY, MAY 12, 2014
SAO PAULO–Economists presented mixed signs regarding their outlook for Brazil’s economic performance, increasing their estimates for the country’s economic growth for this year, but reducing their view for next year, a weekly central-bank survey published Monday showed.
The 100 respondents in the survey increased their outlook for the country’s 2014 economic growth to 1.69% from 1.63%, but for next year they reduced their forecasts to 1.90% from 1.91%.
Meanwhile, economists raised their view for the country’s industrial-production expansion for this year to 1.24% from 1.21%, while they cut their view for next year to 2.37% from 2.65%.
Economists reduced their estimates for Brazil’s inflation at the end of this year to 6.39% from 6.5% and maintained their view at 6% for next year.
Respondents kept their view for the Selic interest rate at the end of this year at 11.25% and for next year at 12.25%.
The Brazilian real is expected to end this year at 2.45 to the U.S. dollar, according to the survey.
The forecast for the trade surplus this year was kept at $3 billion, while the current-account deficit view was raised to $80 billion from $78.60 billion.