After a rocky morning that sent stocks tumbling down over the 10% mark, which triggered a circuit breaker that shut down the market for half an hour, the Bovespa, Brazil's stock exchange, was able to reduce losses and close this Friday, October 10, at 35.609 points or 3.97% down.
It was the seventh time in row of shares slides. Trading for the day was 5.4 billion reais (US$ 2.35 billion).
With these results the Brazilian market now has accumulated 20.01% of losses this week, 28.12% this month of October and over 44% in the whole of 2008. The only respite to the fall this month occurred on October 1st.
Among the heavier losers were Gafisa (-14%), JBS Friboi (-14%), Embraer (Brazilian Aircraft Manufacturer) (-10%) and Renner stores (-10%). Among the most traded shares, oil company Petrobras fell over 7%, while mining firm Vale retreated 1%.
As for the dollar, the repeated interventions by Brazil's Central Bank weren't enough to contain its surge. The greenback ended this Friday at 2.314 reais, 5.27% stronger than the previous day.
During the trade session the BC intervened four times attempting to rein in the American currency. In the first one the bank sold dollars from the Brazilian reserves for 2.27 reais. There was also a swap auction and two more direct sales at a rate of 2.31 reais per dollar.
Brazilian President, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, defended today, in a press conference to news agencies, at Planalto Palace, the seat of the government of Brazil, the reformulation of Central Banks worldwide, as this is a good moment for the world to readjust itself. He said that, even before the crisis that is being lived, he had defended this point of view in meetings with several heads of state.
Lula recalled that whenever Brazil was in crisis, the voices of the financial system that is breaking said that the country needed to adjust its fiscal policy. However, the Central Bank of Brazil is now stabler than it has been at almost any moment in history. Lula stated that Central Banks must review their leverage margin, which is always very high due to reality.
"Nobody can negotiate what he does not have, and the transfer of funds in virtual form, when only paper is sold, is the cause of the financial crisis that is now taking place," said the president of Brazil.
Lula added that despite the global financial crisis he hopes that Brazil may have profits and attract investment by international companies. "Brazil may be a good place for them to make their investment and have the necessary profit to help their headquarters pay their debts abroad," said the Brazilian president.
Lula guaranteed that, despite the crisis, he is going to proceed with the government social programs and with the works of the Growth Acceleration Program (PAC), which includes federal investment in several areas of the Brazilian economy.
