February 5, 2019
BRASILIA (Reuters) – Lower house of Congress Speaker Rodrigo Maia said on Tuesday that pension reform will be the first item on Brazil’s legislative agenda and could be approved in both chambers by July.
Speaking to reporters after meeting with Economy Minister Paulo Guedes, the government’s point man on pension reform, Maia forecast that if the overhaul is approved, the Brazilian economy could grow 6 percent in the following 12 months.
Guedes said the government is considering some versions of pension reform that will be chosen by President Jair Bolsonaro. The minister said the aim is to achieve fiscal savings of at least 1 trillion reais ($273 billion) in a decade.
(Reporting by Anthony Boadle; editing by Jonathan Oatis and Dan Grebler)
