There is a useful review by AP of the current situation in Brazil, matching the picture EIR has repeatedly confirmed from numerous sources. The Bolsonaro government first tried to eliminate all government aid that was going to people affected by the pandemic, but was forced by popular protests to reinstate part of it: at about 50% the original level to about 2/3 of those previously receiving it. Even that paltry help is scheduled to be cancelled in September.
AP says the current real unemployment rate in Brazil is about 29% in the country – surely a low estimate of the reality. The government cutbacks are “leaving vulnerable Brazilians exposed to soaring food prices and a still-worsening job market. And the strain comes at a time when there is no near-term hope of mass vaccination to safeguard the labor force.” The article quotes Sérgio Vale, chief economist at Sao Paulo-based consultancy MB Associates: “People are poorer, have more expensive bills and more expensive food. ... It will be difficult to survive.”
