Brazil Growth Forecast Falls Off a Cliff on Strike, Uncertainty

(Bloomberg) -- Brazil’s growth forecasts fell for a seventh consecutive week as economists assessed the impact of a nationwide trucker strike, growing emerging market turbulence and domestic uncertainty ahead of the October presidential election.

Economists in a weekly central bank survey lowered their 2018 estimate for gross domestic product to 1.76 percent, the lowest level for the year since President Michel Temer took office in May 2016 and fulled hopes of faster economic recovery.

Brazil’s 2018 growth expectations were close to 3 percent just a few months ago, before higher U.S. yields started dimming the appeal of emerging markets. The outlook disintegrated in May after a massive trucker strike paralyzed the nation for a third of the month. Uncertainty about the policies of the next president who will be elected in October also weighs on the economy.

To contact the reporter on this story: Walter Brandimarte in Rio de Janeiro at wbrandimarte@bloomberg.net

To contact the editors responsible for this story: Vivianne Rodrigues at vrodrigues3@bloomberg.net, Peter Millard

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