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How coronavirus broke Brazil's economic dream

Could economy minister Paulo Guedes be the next key ally to abandon embattled President Bolsonaro, as the country's austerity plan is abandoned in the face of the pandemic?

Could economy minister Paulo Guedes be the next key ally to abandon embattled President Bolsonaro?

A corruption scandal has already seen the popular justice minister walk away. Meanwhile Bolsonaro fired his health minister as he seeks to reverse his own government's lockdown on the economy. With the official number of Covid 19 cases in the country surpassing 100,000, we hear the frustration of a doctor on the frontline.

As for the economy minister, the Βι¶ΉΤΌΕΔ's South America business correspondent Daniel Gallas explains how this proponent of spending cuts and privatisation is coming to terms with a hugely expensive income support programme backed by Bolsonaro. Plus economist Monica de Bolle of the Peterson Institute explains why she fears that despite these measures, her country could be on the verge of a depression.

Presenter: Manuela Saragosa
Producer: Laurence Knight

(Photo: People using protective masks wait in line outside a Caixa Economica Federal bank branch in Sao Goncalo, Brazil, to receive urgent government benefit amidst the coronavirus pandemic. Credit: Getty Images)

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18 minutes

Last on

Wed 6 May 2020 07:32GMT

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  • Wed 6 May 2020 07:32GMT

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