Brazil central bank cuts GDP growth forecast

SAO PAULO: Brazil's Central Bank on Thursday said it was cutting its GDP growth forecast for 2012 from 1.6 percent to 1 per cent, confirming a marked slowdown in Latin America's biggest economy.

In September, the Bank had already revised its forecast downward from 2.5 percent to 1.6 percent.

Market analysts have been predicting 1.5 percent growth for Brazil this year, a projection similar to one by the International Monetary Fund in October.

The IMF also expects Brazil to fare worse than its partners in the BRICS bloc of emerging powers, predicting 7.8 percent growth for China, 4.9 percent for India, 3.7 percent for Russia and 2.6 percent for South Africa.