1. Raw ingredient prices drop 0.52% in February thanks to reductions in the prices of soy and corn in Brazil

On Wednesday (28), Fundação Getúlio Vargas (FGV) announced that the General Price Index – Market (IGP-M) registered a 0.52% drop in February after seeing a 0.07% increase in the previous month. The reduction in the prices of soy and corn was one of the highlights of the index.

A Reuters study expected a 0.50% drop. With this result, the index has a cumulative disinflation rate of 3.76% in the last 12 months. Experts believe that, despite the impacts of El Niño in some Brazilian crops, there was not a general reduction in agriculture production.

Valor: IGP-M, conhecido como ‘inflação do aluguel’, cai 0,52% em fevereiro
UOL: IGP-M cai 0,52% em fevereiro com quedas nos preços de soja e milho

2. Income per capita in Brazil confirms economic inequality

According to the Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics (IBGE), social and economic inequality is still rampant in Brazil. Although the country’s general per capita income is R$1,893, the variation between states is significant and alarming, especially in the North and Northeast regions.

However, there has been a slight improvement compared to previous years, with 16.5% growth compared to 2022. It is important to highlight that the values from the National Household Sample Survey (PNAD) are nominal and do not consider inflation over the years.

VEJA: Renda per capita: dados escancaram desigualdade econômica no Brasil

3. Ordinance on commercial working hours during holidays postponed

The Ministry of Labor and Employment postponed for three months the ordinance requiring collective bargaining approval for working hours during holidays for employees in the commerce sectors. It was not possible to reach an agreement between workers, business owners, and the government. The new rules, which were supposed to come into effect on March 1st, have now been postponed to June.

Published in November 2023, the ordinance required collective agreements for working during holidays in every sector. However, a week later, the rule was revoked after the Chamber of Deputies threatened to cancel the ordinance with a legislative decree.

G1: Em busca de acordo, governo adia por mais 90 dias entrada em vigor de portaria que restringe trabalho aos feriados

4. Brazil registers nearly 1 million cases of dengue in 2024, which may impact the economy

This week, the Ministry of Health shared alarming data about dengue fever in Brazil, saying the country has registered nearly 1 million potential cases this year. In the first eight weeks of 2024, 419,400 cases have been reported and 554,00 are under assessment, for a total of 973,300 cases.

Unfortunately, these numbers have a tendency to increase further during the year. Brazilian researchers say climate change is contributing to the progressive increase of cases in Brazil, which can directly affect the economy.

Valor: Brasil se aproxima de 1 milhão de casos prováveis de dengue neste ano

5. Pension funds will be mandatory in Brazil

The National Complementary Pensions Regulatory Board (CNPC), the governing body for investments of this type, decided that Brazilian companies and public bodies can include their employees in an automatic pension fund.

The pension fund is a national complementary private pension system, managed by companies or associations, with progressive or regressive taxation and closed operation. The decision will come into effect as soon as it is published in the Official Diary of the Union, which is likely to happen in the next few days.

UOL: Fundos de pensão terão adesão obrigatória. É bom para a aposentadoria?