Temer tells US investors political stability may make room for reforms

“I invite you all to take part in this new phase of economic growth in the country,” said President Michel Temer Wednesday (Sep. 21) during a lecture for US executives and investors promoted by the Council of the Americas, in New York. Brazil is going through a moment of “extraordinary political stability,” the president said, and “crucial” reforms are making significant strides in the country's pension system, government spending, and labor laws.

Temer noted that his istration has “easy communication channels with the Legislative branch,” which has made possible reforms and proposals the Executive is keen on. “In Brazil, we have extraordinary political stability between the Executive and Legislative branches, which also brings legal security,” he said.

The president explained to executives that the new package of concessions under the Program for Investment Partnerships (PPI in the original acronym), recently launched by the government, seeks to “do something established in our Constitution, namely to have the private enterprise participate in the development and growth of the country alongside the government,” he said.

To stimulate the investment, the president stressed, reforms are underway in the country in such fields as labor laws, the pension system, and government spending. As for the pension system, Temer said, changes will be “radical.”

“We're facing a gaping deficit in our pension system. It's an issue challenging a number of countries. Particularly in Brazil, this has been an ongoing source of grief in our financial and budgetary system. This is why we're about to finish talks and the conclude the preparations for a radical overhaul in the pension system, to be submitted to Congress.”

Petrobras

The president also highlighted the end of Petrobras's mandatory 30% in shares in pre-salt oil exploration enterprises. In his view, the measure was made possible thanks to the Foreign Minister José Serra, who penned the bill changing the sharing system. “We are universalizing the Brazilian market with the conviction that, in order to generate employment, we must stimulate business and recover confidence in the country,” Temer declared.

He went on to say that “a number of other sectors” will be opened to the private enterprise, foreigners included.

Translated by Fabrício Ferreira

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