BRAZIL: Interest Rate Forecast For 2018 Cut To 6.75% Per Year From 7%

(RTTNews) - Economists polled by the Brazilian central bank cut their estimates for the country's benchmark interest rate (Selic) by the end of 2018 to 6.75% after thirteen weeks stable at 7%. The forecast for the average rate in 2018 was kept at 6.75% from 6.81% four weeks ago.

Earlier this month, the Brazilian central bank's Monetary Policy Committee (Copom) cut the country's benchmark interest rate to 7.00% - a record low - from 7.50%, in line with market expectations.

Last week, the Brazilian Central Bank confirmed in its Quarterly Inflation Report the market expectation, as indicated in the last minutes of the Monetary Policy Committee (Copom) released this month, that the Selic interest rate should fall once again at the next meeting, scheduled to February, to 6.75% per year.