Brazil: Current account surplus shrinks in April
Brazil’s current account balance came in at a surplus of USD 620 million in April, below the USD 1.1 billion surplus registered in April 2017 and down from March’s USD 798 million surplus. The print fell short of market expectations of a USD 1.1 billion surplus.
The narrower current account surplus in April compared to the previous year was driven by soaring imports. Import growth accelerated in April to a robust 28.7% in annual terms, which marked the fastest expansion in over six years (March: +6.7% year-on-year). Meanwhile, export growth also gained steam in April and grew 12.7%, following a flat reading in March. Foreign direct investment came in at USD 2.6 billion in April, well below April 2017’s USD 5.6 billion.
The 12-month accumulative current account deficit widened in April to USD 8.9 billion, from USD 8.3 billion in March. April’s result represented approximately 0.4% of GDP.