BRAZIL · ECONOMY
Key Facts
- The country. Brazil is Latin America’s largest economy, with 213.6 million people. President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva has governed since 1 January 2023, and the first round of the next election falls on 4 October 2026.
- The money. The currency is the real, at about 5.13 to the US dollar in September 2026. Your rent, your salary and every figure below are quoted in it.
- The background. The Finance Ministry’s Economic Policy Secretariat publishes a bulletin every two months whose forecasts feed the federal budget. IPCA is Brazil’s official consumer price index; Selic is the central bank’s benchmark interest rate.
- What happened. The bulletin of 22 September 2026 cut growth for 2026 to 2.0% from 2.3%, and for 2027 to 2.3% from 2.5%. Inflation for 2026 was cut to 4.9%.
- What is new. The downgrade sits in services, cut to 1.8% from 2.4%, and industry, cut to 1.7% from 2.1%. Private economists are gloomier still: the central bank’s Focus survey of 21 September put 2026 growth at 1.88%.
- What it means for you. Slower growth with a slower rate-cutting cycle means borrowing costs stay high longer, which shows up in mortgages, car loans and business credit. Savers in reais still earn a high headline rate, with Selic at 13.75% after the cut of 16 September.
- The catch. The ministry closed its figures on 4 September, so they exclude the August inflation reading and the fuel tax relief worth about 0.15 point. No date has been published for the next bulletin.
The Economic Policy Secretariat now sees a slower 2026 and 2027, slightly lower inflation this year and a bit more price pressure next year.
Brazil’s Economic Policy Secretariat cut the Brazil 2026 growth forecast to 2.0% from 2.3% on Tuesday, 22 September 2026. It also lowered the 2027 estimate to 2.3% from 2.5%.
What the bulletin changed
The Economic Policy Secretariat (SPE) of Brazil’s Finance Ministry published its September Macro-Fiscal Bulletin on Tuesday, 22 September 2026. The bulletin is a bimonthly report whose projections feed the federal budget process.
Growth for 2026 was cut to 2.0% from 2.3%. For 2027, the estimate fell to 2.3% from 2.5%.
Inflation, measured by the IPCA consumer price index, was cut to 4.9% for 2026 from 5.1%. For 2027 it was raised to 3.8% from 3.6%.
The team closed its parameter grid on 4 September 2026. It therefore leaves out the August inflation reading and the recent fuel tax relief.
Why the Brazil 2026 growth forecast fell
The revision sits mostly in services, where the projection dropped to 1.8% from 2.4%. Industry was cut to 1.7% from 2.1%.
Agriculture moved the other way, rising to 2.8% from 1.8%. That was not enough to offset the two larger sectors.
The SPE points to a weak first half and the delayed bite of high interest rates. Household debt service reached the highest level in the series in the second quarter.
A wider income tax exemption band lifts disposable income in the second half. The SPE still expects growth of 2.1% year on year in the fourth quarter.
Live Market IntelligenceBrazil — Live Market Board
Rio Times · Live Market Intelligence
Brazil — Live Market Board
+0.66%
172,457.76
+0.66%
71,204.98
-0.84%
10,660.26
+0.33%
2,848,945
—
2,452.46
-0.02%
| Instrument | Last | Change | YoY | Prev. | High | Low | Volume |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| IBOV | 172,457.76 | +0.66% | +9.73% | 171,324.31 | — | — | — |
| USD/BRL | 5.67 | -0.01% | +7.09% | 5.67 | 5.67 | 5.67 | — |
| SELIC | 13.75% | — | — | — | — | — | |
| PETR4 | 45.30 | +0.00% | +39.43% | 45.30 | 45.30 | — | — |
| VALE3 | 63.50 | +0.00% | -3.30% | 63.50 | 63.50 | — | — |
| ITUB4 | 42.27 | +0.00% | +7.66% | 42.27 | 42.27 | — | — |
| BBDC4 | 14.52 | +0.00% | -25.46% | 14.52 | 14.52 | — | — |
| BBAS3 | 15.10 | +0.00% | -32.89% | 15.10 | 15.10 | — | — |
| B3SA3 | 14.89 | +0.88% | +2.90% | 14.76 | 14.94 | 14.53 | 34,792,900 |
| ABEV3 | 15.79 | +0.00% | +15.85% | 15.79 | 15.79 | — | — |
| WEGE3 | 51.31 | -0.66% | +14.48% | 51.65 | 52.05 | 50.93 | 7,741,000 |
| PRIO3 | 63.30 | +0.00% | +58.93% | 63.30 | 63.30 | — | — |
| SUZB3 | 54.77 | +0.00% | +14.92% | 54.77 | 54.77 | — | — |
| RENT3 | 30.07 | +0.00% | -28.47% | 30.07 | 30.07 | — | — |
| AZZA3 | 15.91 | +0.00% | -45.85% | 15.91 | 15.91 | — | — |
| CSNA3 | 3.72 | +0.00% | -56.79% | 3.72 | 3.72 | — | — |
| GGBR4 | 24.73 | +0.00% | +30.78% | 24.73 | 24.73 | — | — |
| ENEV3 | 26.81 | +0.00% | +38.98% | 26.81 | 26.81 | — | — |
The inflation picture
Twelve-month IPCA inflation eased to 4.2% in August from 4.6% in June. That is below the upper limit of the official target.
The SPE cut its 2026 figure because results through July came in partly below its July grid. Food at home, and to a lesser degree services, drove that miss.
For 2027 the ministry raised its estimate to 3.8%, pointing to a more intense El Niño. It expects lower grain output and, later, higher meat prices.
The projection was made before the August IPCA release on 11 September. Fuel tax relief could take about 0.15 point off the index, by the SPE’s own estimate.
Interest rates and the oil shock
The bulletin assumes a slightly more gradual easing cycle than in July. The accumulated Selic benchmark rate for 2026 was nudged up to 14.22% from 14.16%.
The central bank’s rate committee cut the Selic rate to 13.75% on 16 September, its fifth straight reduction. Cuts have totalled 1.25 percentage points since March 2026.
The SPE now treats the oil shock from the US–Iran conflict as persistent rather than temporary. Brent passed US$100 a barrel in the first week of September.
Its 2026 Brent crude assumption rose to US$87.70 a barrel from US$79.20. The 2027 assumption rose to US$79.50 from US$71.00.
The exchange rate and the fiscal target
The bulletin keeps its average exchange rate assumption for 2026 unchanged at about 5.16 reais to the dollar. That is a planning assumption, not a market call.
The estimated primary result for meeting the 2026 fiscal target rose to a surplus of R$10.77 billion (US$2.11 billion). The earlier estimate was R$4.05 billion (US$793 million).
Dollar conversions here use rates of about 5.11 reais to the dollar on 23 September 2026. The ministry’s own grid uses its 5.16 assumption instead.
The bulletin lists Finance Minister Dario Durigan and Economic Policy Secretary Débora Freire Cardoso on its masthead. Both were in post on the day it appeared.
How this compares with other forecasts
The market is gloomier than the ministry. The central bank’s Focus survey of 21 September put 2026 growth at 1.88% and 2027 at 1.43%.
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) was more upbeat in July, at 2.4% for 2026 and 2.2% for 2027. The World Bank saw 1.9% for 2026 in June.
The SPE notes that the market median has sat below its own projection across the near horizon. For this year the gap is about 0.1 percentage point.
Forecasts made on different dates are not strictly comparable. Each rests on its own cut-off and its own assumptions.
What it means for expats and investors in Latin America
Slower growth with a more gradual easing cycle points to borrowing costs staying high for longer. That matters for mortgages, car loans and business credit in Brazil.
Savers holding reais still earn a high headline rate while the Selic sits at 13.75%. The trade-off is softer activity and slower hiring.
The ministry’s exchange rate assumption is flat rather than weaker, at about 5.16 reais to the dollar. Anyone sending money home should still watch the daily market rate.
Brazil is one of the region’s largest economies, so its outlook colours how investors read Latin America. The bulletin itself makes no forecast for neighbouring countries.
What is not known is when the next edition will appear, since the ministry has not published a date. Also unknown is how the August inflation data and fuel tax relief will change the picture.
The Brazil 2026 growth forecast now stands at 2.0%, and the next bulletin will show whether it holds.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is Brazil’s new 2026 growth forecast?
The Finance Ministry’s Economic Policy Secretariat cut it to 2.0% from 2.3% in its September Macro-Fiscal Bulletin.
Why was the forecast lowered?
Weaker services and industry, only partly offset by stronger agriculture. High interest rates and a costlier oil outlook also weighed.
Does the market agree with the ministry?
No. The Focus survey of 21 September 2026 put 2026 growth at 1.88%, below the ministry’s 2.0%.
Connected Coverage
Brazil’s Central Bank Says Inflation Is Still Driven by Demand
Brazil Sets an August Tax Record as Company and Capital Levies Rise
Sources: Boletim MacroFiscal da SPE, Ministério da Fazenda, September 2026 edition and ministry statement of 22 September 2026; Banco Central do Brasil Focus survey and Copom; IMF World Economic Outlook Update, July 2026; World Bank Global Economic Prospects, June 2026; Poder360.
This article was produced by The Rio Times’ automated AI newsroom. Editorial responsibility: Matthias Camenzind, Publisher and Editor-in-Chief. The Rio Times also runs Ask Rio Times, which answers from 100,000+ of our own articles, the daily Latin America Power Map, and prediction-market odds on elections and markets.. How we use AI · Report an error
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