BlackRock on the Brazilian market

Will Landers, manager of the BlackRock Latin American Investment Trust, said: "The ever growing middle class means that Brazil is becoming increasingly less dependent on exports for economic growth. Now that inflation has been contained, nominal interest rates are at historical low levels and we expect the Brazilian Central Bank to reduce nominal rates to below 10% for the first time in my lifetime. During President Lula's presidency, we have witnessed the emergence of a more solid middle class - 15 percent of the population that lived below the poverty line have moved up to the middle class and we now have 20 to 30 million people who weren't economically active a decade ago, now eligible for credit.

This increase in affluence means that the economy is less heavily dependent on exports, which account for approximately 16 per cent of the gross domestic product. This increase in wealth allows Brazilians to be less restrictive when it comes to their spending habits. This resilience, despite the world economic downturn, is one of the reasons for making Brazil our top pick among Latin American markets."