Brazil: Business confidence hits three-year high in May

Business sentiment rose in May, climbing to its highest level in three years. The Getulio Vargas Foundation’s (FGV, Fundaçao Getúlio Vargas) business confidence index increased a seasonally adjusted 1.2% from the previous month, rising from April’s 91.2 points to 92.3 points. Despite the rise, the index still remains below the 100-point threshold that signals that businesses are more pessimistic than optimistic.

According to FGV, the result came as firms grew less pessimistic regarding their expectations for the current and future economic situations.

Panelists surveyed for this month’s LatinFocus report see fixed investment growing 1.7% in 2017, which is down 0.1 percentage points from last month’s forecast. For 2018, panelists expect fixed investment to grow 6.7%.