Brazil’s economy dips 3.6% in 2016

Brazil’s economy has fallen sharply for a second consecutive year, putting Latin America’s largest country in its deepest recession in modern history.
The country’s statistics agency said on Tuesday that Brazil’s gross domestic product (GDP) shrank 3.6 percent in 2016 following a dip of 3.8 percent in 2015.
Brazil’s deepest recession had been registered in 1930-1931, when its economy dropped 2.1 percent and 3.3 percent, respectively.
Brazil’s President Michel Temer says the first signs of recovery have appeared, but many economists predict another difficult year for the country.
Infrastructure concessions
Temer launched an infrastructure concessions program on Tuesday to raise $14.43 billion in investment for building and operating roads, port terminals, railways and power transmission lines.
The program is a key part of his strategy to restore business confidence and pull Brazil’s economy from recession.
Inaugurating a meeting of the Investment Partnership Program (PPI), which will oversee concession tenders, Temer said 55 new projects would be opened to the private sector.
“We are leaving behind a deep recession and entering a phase of prosperity where private investment will be decisive,” said the president.
The infrastructure program will kick off on March 16 with auctions to run the airports of Porto Alegre, Florianopolis, Salvador and Fortaleza, which are expected to draw much investor interest.
Wellington Moreira Franco, the minister in charge of the PPI, said the government would offer 35 concessions in energy transmission.
The PPI plan includes concessions to operate new terminals in the ports of Santana, Itaqui and Paranagua, and the extension of contracts in Vila do Conde, Niteroi and Santos, Brazil’s largest port. The plan offers early renovation of five railway concessions in return for new investment commitments.
With its budget squeezed by recession, Temer is betting an increase in private investment can revive the economy despite political turbulence from a sweeping anti-corruption investigation.

Source: Arab News