Brazil ends 2023 with more optimism about government and economy, Febraban says

Brazilians will end 2023 with more optimism about the year ahead and the country’s development than in 2022, according to the Radar Febraban survey conducted by the Brazilian Bank Federation and published last week.

According to the collected data, the inflation rate in Brazil has decreased, and optimism has increased

The data was collected by the Institute for Social, Political and Economic Studies (Ipespe) from November 29 to December 2, from interviews with 2,000 people in five regions of the country.

Almost six in ten respondents (59%) believe that Brazil will improve in 2024, four percentage points higher than in 2022 (55%). The number of pessimists decreased from 26% to 17% during this period.

The poll also shows that almost half (49%) of Brazilians think the country is better off than last year, the highest percentage on record for a 12-month period. This percentage in December 2022 was 39%.

The country’s equality score increased from 25% to 30% during this period. Over the past twelve months, the number of those reporting deterioration has fallen from 34% to 20%. A little more than half of those polled (51%) approve of Lula’s government.

Another opinion that prices have risen or risen a lot saw a drop of 25 points between the December 2022 survey (79%) and the current one (54%). The expectation of an improvement in the purchasing power of the population from December 2022 to today has increased from 36% to 39%.

For the sociologist and political scientist Antonio Lavareda, president of the Scientific Council of Ipespe, the results reflect a positive balance of 2023 and optimism with the arrival of the new year, which better indicates the perception of Brazilians’ personal lives.

As an example, he cites lower inflation expectations and a falling debt outlook, probably helped by the bank-backed Desenrola programme. “People’s sentiments have fluctuated throughout the year, which is natural, but ending the year with better expectations can help to have a positive effect on 2024.”

Click here to read the study