Brazil: Economic growth falters in March
The Brazilian economy stumbled at the end of the first quarter: Economic activity declined 0.1% month on month in seasonally adjusted terms. The downturn, which was smaller than the 0.3% forecasted contraction, was a marked deterioration from the 2.5% increase tallied in February.
On an annual basis, economic activity growth soared to 5.5% in March, nearly doubling the prior month’s 2.8% expansion. Consequently, the trend improved, with annual average growth in economic activity coming in at 3.3% in March, up from February’s 3.1% reading.
Meanwhile, retail sales posted a stronger-than-expected 0.8% expansion in seasonally adjusted month-on-month terms in March, improving from the prior month’s flat reading. Additionally, industrial output grew 1.1% month-on-month in seasonally adjusted terms in March, improving notably from February’s 0.2% decline.