A record 4.9 million Brazilians lost their jobs between February and April, pushing the country’s unemployment rate to 12.6 percent, as measured by the Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics. The figures echo yesterday’s announcement by the Economy Ministry that 1.1 million formal jobs had been closed between January and April.
Retail was the worst-affected sector, followed by construction (885,000), and domestic services (727,000). It is estimated that another 3.7 million informal jobs were also destroyed, contributing to a total rise of 5.2 percent in the number of unemployed Brazilians. According to the institute, this change has contributed to an average retraction of 3.3 percent in Brazilians’ income — representing an overall decrease of BRL 7.3 billion (USD 1.37 billion).
he last official release by IBGE, published in January, indicated that unemployment in Brazil was at 11.2 percent. Last month, however, this live blog showed that the institute’s predictions for Q1 were not reflecting the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic. On April 30, IBGE indicated that 1.2 million Brazilians had lost their jobs due to the crisis.
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