Although Roberto Campos Neto, the head of Brazil’s central bank, was named Latin America’s Central Banker of the Year in 2022 and is widely known as the country’s inflation tamer, Lula da Silva believes he is in a position to attack him continually.
Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva warned yesterday, Thursday, that the country, the largest Latin American economy, runs the risk of suffering a credit crisis if the central bank does not lower the interest rate that stands at 13.75 percent per annum.
“The economy is not growing; there is unemployment and informal employment in which workers earn very little because the wage bill fell significantly.”
“Credit is becoming scarce, and if we continue like this, we will soon have a credit crisis,” Lula claimed in an interview with BandNews without giving any proof.
The president asked, “what is the explanation for the interest rate being at 13.75 percent in a country where the economy is not growing?”
According to Lula, Brazil’s economy “cannot be held hostage to one person,” alluding to Roberto Campos Neto, who will be chairman of the board for the Americas at BIS, appointed by former President Jair Bolsonaro (2019-2022).
His mandate runs until 2024, as stipulated by the law of autonomy of the monetary authority.
“There is no excess consumption; there is no consumer inflation. The economy is not growing, and people are not eating. So, there is no reason for that interest rate,” claimed the Brazilian president.
Lula’s statements come on the same day it was disclosed that the country’s Gross Domestic Product growth was 2.9 percent in 2022.