Brazilian economy grows more than expected in 2024

The Central Bank (BC) released, last Monday morning (18), its economic activity index, the IBC-Br, which indicated growth above expectations in January. According to the BC, the Brazilian Gross Domestic Product (GDP) grew 0.6% in the first month of the year. In the last 12 months, growth was 2.47%.

Considering the economic challenges faced in recent years, such as recession, high inflation and unemployment, the market, cautiously, expected an increase of just 0.26%.

About GDP

GDP is one of the main indicators used to measure a country's economic activity, as it represents the sum of all goods and services produced over a period. Growth in GDP indicates that the economy is expanding, generating more jobs, increasing family income and stimulating market consumption.

Retail and job market results

Last Thursday (14), the Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics (IBGE) released the results of the Monthly Commerce Survey (PMC), which recorded a 2.5% growth in retail in January. First statistically recorded increase since September 2023.

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_{Woman shopping in a mall (Photo: reproduction/E+/lechatnoir/Getty Images Embed)}

In relation to the increase in the number of jobs, the Ministry of Labor published, last Friday afternoon (15), the General Register of Employed and Unemployed Persons (Caged), which analyzes hiring and dismissals in the formal job market. The number of hires in January exceeded layoffs by 180,000, double what was expected.

In an interview with the American business and economics magazine Forbes, Enrico Cozzolino, strategist at Levante Ideias de Investimentos, highlighted that trade results in January were surprising and indicate that the economy is recovering and heading in the right direction.

Featured Photo: graph representing economic growth (Reproduction/Moment/jayk7/Getty Images Embed)