Good morning! Today, we talk about a recent bump in Brazilian productivity. More risks to the Mercosur free-trade deal with the European Union. And new climate risks.
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Worker productivity up for second straight quarter
Brazilian work productivity has posted an annual increase in Q2 2023, according to the Brazilian Institute of Economics at think tank Fundação Getulio Vargas (FGV-Ibre). It is only the second time in at least six years that the country has seen positive variations for two straight quarters (and the other, in 2020, was biased by distortions created by the pandemic).
- These distortions came from the fact that Covid led to layoffs of less-educated workers while more skilled ones preserved their jobs.
Why it matters. Work productivity has been a major bottleneck in Brazil. Moreover, only the agribusiness sector had been posting productivity increases in recent years. But industries and services saw an improvement in this regard.
Yes, but ⌠The industrial sectors that posted better results are linked to commodities. Manufacturing has actually seen productivity drop in...