RIO DE JANEIRO: Brazil’s economy grew just 0.1 percent in 2014, national statistics institute IBGE said.
The result, the worst since 2009, was expected by the market as Brazil registered a technical recession in the first half of 2014 and struggled out of it in the third quarter with a 0.1 percent growth rate.
Brazil’s gross domestic product (GDP) totaled 5.52 trillion reals (2.46 trillion U.S. dollars) in 2014, according to the IBGE.
Brazil’s industry had a significant contraction of 1.2 percent in 2014, while agriculture grew 0.4 percent and services increased by 0.7 percent, according to the institute.
In 2014, investments fell 4.4 percent, which was attributed to lower domestic output, a weak construction sector and a drop in the import of capital goods.
Household consumption and government spending grew by 0.9 and 1.3 percent respectively. Imports fell 1 percent, while exports fell 1.1 percent in 2014.
The country’s fourth-quarter GDP totaled 1.446 trillion reals (645 billion U.S. dollars), growing 0.3 percent compared to the third quarter and 0.2 percent compared to the same period in 2013.
Compared to the third quarter, agriculture grew 1.8 percent and services 0.3 percent, but industry fell 0.1 percent. Household consumption was up 1.1 percent, government consumption was down 0.6 percent, and investments were down 0.4 percent.
Compared to the same quarter in 2013, industry shrank 1.9 percent, while agriculture and services grew by 1.2 and 0.4 percent respectively. Investments were down 5.8 percent. Household consumption was up 1.3 percent and government expenditure was down 0.2 percent.
Brazil’s investment rate was 19.7 percent in 2014, while the country’s savings rate was 15.8 percent.
Finance Minister Joaquim Levy said that the Brazilian economy did not have any “impulse” in the beginning of the year, but it was starting to recover with the measures taken recently.
