Rate gauging confidence in economy highest since 2013

The Business Confidence Index (ICE in the original) went up 4.3 points in June to 98.8 points, the highest level since December 2013. After the third consecutive increase, the average for the second quarter of 2021 surpassed that of the previous quarter by 7.2 points. The figure was unveiled today (Jul. 1) by the Brazilian Economy Institute of the Getulio Vargas Foundation (FGV/Ibre).

According to Aloisio Campelo, statistics superintendent at the institute, the growth in business confidence reflects the continuation of the economic resumption phase, driven chiefly by industry, which since October 2020 has seen the highest average levels of confidence since 2011. Another highlight in business surveys in June was services.

“After the third consecutive significant increase, the confidence in the sector is reaching the highest level since the beginning of the pandemic. It must be noted that the recovery of the sector continues taking place heterogeneously, with the segment of services provided to families advancing more slowly and under still prevalent influence of expectations. Speeding up the vaccination program is vital in normalizing the activity level in this segment over the course of the second half of the year,” Aloisio Campelo declared.

The index combines confidence rates in four sectors gauged by the business surveys conducted by FGV/Ibre: industry, services, trade, and construction.

All sectors comprised by the indicator reported a growth in June, driven both by better evaluations on the current state of business and by short-run expectations, except for trade in the latter. Industry and services contributed with over 80 percent in the month’s confidence variation.