OECD revises Brazilian growth forecast down to 0.3%

Brazil will experience "a modest rebound" of only 0.3 percent this year, the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) predicted on Monday.
The new figure is down from OECD's prediction of 1.8 percent in May. According to the agency, Brazil is expected to see a 1.4-percent growth in 2015.
The agency's adjusted figures concurred with a market survey published Monday by Brazil's Central Bank, which downgraded last week's 0.48-percent growth forecast to 0.33 percent, but maintained next year's projected growth rate of 1.1 percent.
After reaching a 7.5-percent growth in 2010, Brazil's economy plunged to 2.7 percent in 2011, 1.0 percent in 2012 and 2.3 percent in 2013.
Official figures showed economic growth consecutively contracted in the first two quarters, signifying Brazil has entered a "technical recession."
However, a central bank report showed that Brazil's economic activity index, considered as an indicator of gross domestic product (GDP) growth, grew 1.5 percent in July compared with the month before.
At an economic forum in Sao Paulo on Monday, Brazilian Finance Minister Guido Mantega reaffirmed that the country's economy is ready to resume growth, citing the rising income, falling unemployment, the increasing availability of credit, a stable exchange rate and extensive foreign currency reserves.
Brazil should see much better performance in the second half of 2014 than it did in the first, especially as the global outlook shows signs of improvement, he said.