Brazil: Business confidence plummets to new record low in September

Business sentiment fell in September, according to the Getulio Vargas Foundation (FGV, Fundaçao Getulio Vargas) business confidence indicator. The index decreased a seasonally-adjusted 2.9% over the previous month, falling from August’s 68.0 points to 66.0 points. September’s figure marked the lowest level since the index began in October 2005. As a result, the index remains far below the 100-point threshold that signals that businesses are more pessimistic than optimistic.

According to FGB, firms were more pessimistic in September regarding their expectations of the current and future economic situation.

Panelists surveyed in this month’s LatinFocus report see fixed investment falling 9.5% in 2015, which is down 2.0 percentage points from last month’s forecast. For 2016, panelists expect fixed investment to fall 1.2%.