AGL 40.00 Decreased By ▼ -0.01 (-0.02%)
AIRLINK 127.00 Decreased By ▼ -0.99 (-0.77%)
BOP 6.68 Increased By ▲ 0.08 (1.21%)
CNERGY 4.49 Decreased By ▼ -0.11 (-2.39%)
DCL 8.60 Increased By ▲ 0.12 (1.42%)
DFML 41.30 Decreased By ▼ -0.18 (-0.43%)
DGKC 86.71 Increased By ▲ 0.13 (0.15%)
FCCL 32.16 Increased By ▲ 0.02 (0.06%)
FFBL 64.70 Decreased By ▼ -0.72 (-1.1%)
FFL 10.29 Increased By ▲ 0.04 (0.39%)
HUBC 109.51 Decreased By ▼ -0.98 (-0.89%)
HUMNL 14.90 Increased By ▲ 0.15 (1.02%)
KEL 5.05 Decreased By ▼ -0.08 (-1.56%)
KOSM 7.40 Increased By ▲ 0.28 (3.93%)
MLCF 41.39 Decreased By ▼ -0.26 (-0.62%)
NBP 60.60 Increased By ▲ 0.51 (0.85%)
OGDC 190.00 Decreased By ▼ -4.69 (-2.41%)
PAEL 27.81 Decreased By ▼ -0.14 (-0.5%)
PIBTL 7.75 Decreased By ▼ -0.25 (-3.13%)
PPL 149.75 Decreased By ▼ -1.42 (-0.94%)
PRL 26.73 Decreased By ▼ -0.15 (-0.56%)
PTC 16.18 Increased By ▲ 0.18 (1.13%)
SEARL 86.02 Increased By ▲ 7.82 (10%)
TELE 7.72 Increased By ▲ 0.33 (4.47%)
TOMCL 35.58 Decreased By ▼ -0.09 (-0.25%)
TPLP 8.14 Increased By ▲ 0.23 (2.91%)
TREET 16.51 Increased By ▲ 0.62 (3.9%)
TRG 53.35 Increased By ▲ 0.59 (1.12%)
UNITY 26.28 Decreased By ▼ -0.27 (-1.02%)
WTL 1.26 Decreased By ▼ -0.01 (-0.79%)
BR100 9,884 Decreased By -36.4 (-0.37%)
BR30 30,600 Decreased By -151.5 (-0.49%)
KSE100 93,355 Increased By 130.9 (0.14%)
KSE30 28,931 Increased By 46 (0.16%)
World

Brazil govt debt ends 2020 at record high 89.3pc of GDP

  • The public sector deficit in December excluding interest payments was 51.8 billion reais ($9.5 billion), the central bank said, close to the 51.5 billion reais median estimate in a Reuters poll of economists.
  • The nominal deficit in December including interest payments widened to 75.8 billion reais, the central bank said, resulting in an annual deficit of 1.02 trillion reais, or 13.7% of GDP.
Published January 29, 2021

BRASILIA: Brazil's national debt and public sector deficit ended last year at record highs, central bank figures showed on Friday, while a steep decline in official borrowing costs pushed interest payments as a share of the economy to historic lows.

As the COVID-19 pandemic decimated Brazil's public finances over the course of the year, government debt in December reached 89.3% of gross domestic product, more than economists had expected and the highest level on record.

The public sector deficit in December excluding interest payments was 51.8 billion reais ($9.5 billion), the central bank said, close to the 51.5 billion reais median estimate in a Reuters poll of economists.

Although the public finances deteriorated, the 2020 deficit was narrower than the government had forecast and the debt was lower than many economists had expected, due to the economy's recovery in the second half of the year.

The annual primary deficit was 703 billion reais ($129 billion), or 9.5% of GDP. The government's last forecast was for a 844.2 billion reais deficit, or 11.7% GDP, although the Treasury had indicated it could be closer to 800 billion reais.

The figures showed that the central government's primary deficit of 745 billion reais was countered by surpluses in local authorities and state-run enterprises.

The nominal deficit in December including interest payments widened to 75.8 billion reais, the central bank said, resulting in an annual deficit of 1.02 trillion reais, or 13.7% of GDP.

While debt and borrowing ballooned as the government spent heavily to protect people, businesses and jobs, record low interest rates meant that interest payments as a share of GDP fell to 4.22% from 5% the year before, a series low.

In nominal terms, interest payments last year fell to 312.4 billion reais from 367.3 billion.

Comments

Comments are closed.