Good morning! Brazil’s wealth gap gets even wider amid the pandemic. The Real peeks its head above the USD 1: BRL 5 mark. Family farmers feeling the pinch in new rural credit program.
Pandemic made Brazil’s top 1 percent even richer
The coronavirus crisis is set to put Brazil back on the Hunger Map, with over half of households facing some sort of food insecurity. Meanwhile, on the other end of the social pyramid, the crisis has barely been felt. In fact, Brazil’s top 1 percent increased its share of the total wealth produced in the country. Now, just over 207,000 individuals in the nation of 210 million control nearly half of all the money, according to the latest Credit Suisse Global Wealth Report.
- The report confirms other research showing that Brazilian inequality is reaching its highest level in the 21st century — essentially scrapping two decades of policies aimed at lowering poverty rates.
Why it matters. Less than a question of “doing the right thing,” fighting inequality is smart business. Brazil’s consumption-based economy needs more financially empowered citizens to continue ticking over.
- Wealthy people are not big consumers. While the goods they buy are more expensive, they spend...