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.