Brazil's current account deficit nearly doubled in 2010 as its strong currency boosted imports and increased Brazilian purchasing power abroad. Latin America's largest economy ran a current account deficit of $47.518 billion in 2010, up from $24.302 billion in 2009, central bank data showed on Tuesday. In December, the country posted a current account gap of $3.493 billion compared with $5.950 billion in the red in the same month in 2009.
The country had been expected to post a deficit of $3.3 billion for the month, according to the median forecast of 16 analysts in a Reuters survey. The forecasts for the deficit ranged from $5.3 billion to $2.2 billion. In the 12 months through December, the current account deficit was equal to 2.28 percent of gross domestic product. Brazil's external accounts have come under pressure as a rally in its currency has hurt exports and made Brazilians avid consumers of foreign goods. Despite a series of government measures to contain its rise, the real has gained almost 14 percent against the dollar since last year's low hit on May 25. The country attracted $15.364 billion in foreign direct investment in December, taking the total for the year to $48.462 billion.
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