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SAO PAULO (AP) \u2014 Brazil’s economy grew 2.9% in 2023, beating expectations in the first year of the administration of President Luiz In\u00e1cio Lula da Silva, according to the government statistics institute Friday.<\/p>\n
The number announced by IBGE impressed many economists, whose overall forecaste early last year was for only 0.8% growth in 2023.<\/p>\n
Brazil’s economy grew 3% in 2022, partly due to government spending programs pushed by then-President Jair Bolsonaro<\/a><\/span><\/span> amid his failed reelection bid.<\/p>\n The credit rating agency Austin Ratings said Brazil’s economy is now the ninth biggest in the world, based on the preliminary gross domestic product numbers announced Friday. Reaching $2.17 trillion in GDP last year moved the South American nation ahead of Canada and Russia, it said.<\/p>\n The Brazilian statistics agency said Brazil’s record production of soybeans and corn helped the overall results.<\/p>\n \u201cAgriculture represented about a third of all the growth of Brazil’s economy last year,\u201d Rebeca Palis, a coordinator at IBGE, said in a statement.<\/p>\n The government said after the results that it expects 2024 growth to be at 2.2%, which would again above market expectations. Lula has said in public forums he wants to push the number above 3% this year by drawing more foreign investment to Brazil.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n