Brazil Q3 2010 GDP Up 0.5 Percent; Economy Shows Sustainable Growth

BRASILIA, Brazil, Dec. 9, 2010 /PRNewswire/ -- The Brazilian government announced today that its 2010 third quarter Gross Domestic Product (GDP) rose 0.5 percent over the second quarter of 2010, according to data released by the Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics (IBGE). National production of goods and services amounted to R$ 937.2 billion, or US$ 554.6 billion, demonstrating that the Brazilian economy has been expanding at a sustainable pace.

The GDP increase is a result of growth in the services sector (1.0 percent).  The industry and agriculture sectors showed slight reductions of -1.3 percent and -1.5 percent respectively, when compared to the second quarter of 2010. The investment rate for the quarter was 19.4 percent of GDP, and the Gross Savings Rate reached 18.5 percent.

"The investment rate shows the Brazilian economy growing with quality," said Finance Minister Guido Mantega. "The slight deceleration when compared to the previous quarter had been expected. We forecast rates will be higher for the last quarter of 2010, and a result of at least 7.5 percent GDP growth for the year.  It is predicted to turn out to be the best result since 1986, according to IBGE figures."

Regarding domestic demand, the growth rate of gross fixed capital formation was 3.9 percent in the third quarter of 2010 over the second quarter. Household consumption grew 1.6 percent, while public administration consumption remained stable (0.0 percent).

3Q 2010 Quarter-on-Quarter Performance

Brazil's economy recorded a 6.7 percent increase for the third quarter of 2010 compared to the third quarter of 2009. Among economic activities, deserving highlight are the industry sector (8.3 percent increase), followed by agriculture (7.0 percent increase) and services (4.9 percent increase) sectors.

Brazil reported 5.9 percent growth in household consumption, and 4.1 percent growth in the consumption of public administration in the third quarter of 2010 over the same quarter of 2009. The growth rate of the gross fixed capital formation for the quarter was 21.2 percent.

Annual Performance

The accumulated GDP for the four quarters ending in the third quarter 2010 grew by 7.5 percent in the seasonally adjusted series against the previous four quarters. Over this period, the GDP report showed strength in the industry sector, with 10.2 percent growth, followed by the agriculture sector, with 5.9 percent growth, and the services sector, with 5.7 percent growth.

During this period, gross fixed capital formation grew 20.2 percent, household consumption increased by 7.0 percent, and consumption of public administration grew by 4.8 percent.

SUMMARY TABLE – Brazil's GDP results at market prices from Q3 2009 to Q3 2010

The Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics (IBGE)

To access more information about IBGE in English and the full 3Q 2010 GDP press release in Portuguese, please visit: www.ibge.gov.br/english

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