Stability and consumption on the rise make production of capital goods grow 19.5%
Valor Econômico - 02/11/2008
Excited by greater economic stability and rise on consumption, the companies increased their investments in 2007 and, as a result, there was strong increase on the capital goods' production: 19.5%. It was the highest mark since 2004 (19.7%), according to the Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics (IBGE). Such performance exemplifies the increase of the investments in the expansion of the productive capacity of the companies, according to the analysis of specialists. As the IBGE has informed, the industrial production went 6% up in 2007, compared to the previous year's result. This was the best result since 2004, when the growth reached 8.3%. In 2006, the industrial production had grown 2.8%. The IBGE attributes last year's result to the heating of the domestic demand influenced by the expansion of the credit, the increase of employment and income and the increase of the investments. According to the IBGE, the increase of the production in 2007 reached 21 of the 27 surveyed fields. The main positive impact came from the industry of machinery and equipment, which presented an expansion of 17.7% last year. The industries of cars (15.2%), machines, devices and electric materials (14%) and other chemical products (5.7%) also contributed to it. On the other hand, six sectors had a negative effect on the result. The main falls were in the sectors of tobacco (- 8.1%) and wood (- 3.2%). The four sectors of the industry had positive performance: capital goods (19.5%), consumer durables (9.2%), intermediate goods (4.9%) and semi-durable and non-durable consumer goods (3.4%) grew compared to 2006. According to the IBGE, the recovery of agriculture, with a record harvest last year, stimulated the production of machinery and equipment for the sector - 48.3% increase in 2007. The capital goods consumed by the industry itself went 17% up. These two were the biggest contributors for the advance of the category.