Top Section
Explore Business Standard
Don’t miss the latest developments in business and finance.
On the campaign trail, Luiz Incio Lula da Silva promised to sustain a massive welfare programme, increase the minimum wage and boost health and education spending. Now, Brazil's president-elect is trying to make good on those pledges -- and investors are showing concern. Da Silva's transition team on Wednesday night presented Congress with an outline of a proposal to skirt a constitutionally imposed spending cap by creating a carve-out for welfare. Then, at the climate talks in Egypt on Thursday, he reiterated that he pays little heed to whether his plans to lead a socially responsible government might cause jittery speculators to sell off. When trading opened on Thursday, Brazil's currency slid to its weakest level against the dollar since July and the benchmark Bovespa stock index fell more than 2.5 per cent, before trimming losses hours later. Traders have begun pricing in interest-rate hikes next year rather than cuts, as da Silva's proposal "confirmed (fiscal) risk that before .