Brazilian companies invested 7.4% of their net revenues in the first quarter of this year. According to a study by credit analysis organization Serasa, the index represents the expansion of investment in fixed assets over net profit. In 2007, investment was 9.2%, a record.
According to the Serasa, the percentage invested in the first quarter is expressive, as it is not common for companies to invest in fixed assets at this time of the year. Fixed assets are funds invested by the company in areas turned to its end activity, from acquisition of buildings and plots of land to vehicles and machinery.
The expansion of companies, according to the Serasa, has been taking place since 2004 due to the growth of the Brazilian economy. The service sector, according to the study, invested above the general average between January and March, 9.7% of revenues.
In 2007, the figure had been 12.7%. The energy and telephony areas also played a significant part in this performance.
Industry invested 7.8% in the first quarter, against 8.1% last year. The sectors that posted the best performance, in this case, were pulp and paper, food, ironworks and the chemical industry. According to the Serasa, the pulp and paper industry is living a good period due to domestic and international sales and also to higher international prices of the product.
Trade, in turn, did not make expressive investment in fixed assets due to the nature of the activity. The percentage invested in the area was 1.3% of revenues, as most of the funds are turned to working capital. The sectors that invested most, however, within retail, were the garment and food sectors.
The Serasa study considers 800 balance sheets of companies in the industrial, service and trade sectors, published this year. The Brazilian government's Growth Acceleration Program (PAC) has been boosting investment, according to the Serasa. The PAC is a set of measures to boost public and private investment in infrastructure.
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