August Foreign investment in Brazil drops 26% to US$4.5 billion

RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – The Central Bank (BC) announced this Friday that Direct Investment in the Country (IDP) was US$4.5 billion in August, an increase of 73% in relation to the same period last year when the country was in a bad pandemic moment.

However, in comparison with July this year, when the IDP totaled US$6.1 billion, there was a 26.2% drop.

The Central Bank states that the comparison with previous months can be affected by seasonal factors. In certain months of the year, the IDP is historically higher or lower due to a variety of elements that make up a company’s decision-making process, such as the need to show results in the headquarters abroad, for example.

This year, US$36.2 billion have already entered the country, 14.8% more than in the same period last year (US$31.5 billion). The Central Bank expects the number to reach US$60 billion this year.

The IDP encompasses long-lasting investments in the country, such as expanding a factory’s production capacity or assets in a new branch of a foreign company. For this reason, it depends on investors having security when making decisions.

For September, the Central Bank’s projection is for an inflow of US$5 billion.

As for portfolio investments, which are more volatile and follow the uncertainties of the moment, the inflow was US$1.2 billion in August, the same level as in July this year. The August figure was the result of the outflow of US$170 million in stocks and funds and the inflow of US$1.4 billion in debt securities.

TRAVEL EXPENSES

Travel revenues and expenses have been growing since June 2021, although they are still below pre-pandemic levels. Foreigners’ spending in Brazil in August was US$251.6 million against US$194.4 million in May, for example. The expenses of Brazilians abroad were US$447 million against US$333.6 million in May.

This upward movement indicates a recovery of the tourism sector globally, which follows the advance of vaccination.

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