FGV's survey shows that inflation and taxes distress Brazilian business people

Inflation, government policies and the tax burden trouble Brazilian business people. These are some of the findings of the new edition of the survey CFO Global Business Overview - prepared by FGV's School of Economics in São Paulo (EESP) in partnership with Duke University and CFO Magazine, and with the support of BMFBovespa and the Brazilian Institute of Finance Executives (IBEF).  The Brazilian economy seems to be at a turning point. Inflation, which has long been a source of concern, has reappeared. Thus, the interest in government policies increases, explains Klenio Barbosa, EESP professor and co-director of the Global Business Outlook survey. Also according to the survey, corruption troubles over half of companies' CFOs in Brazil: 57% believe that it leads to slower business growth, higher prices and less competition.  Hiring shall decline in the coming months  The study shows a reduction in the growth rate of permanent employees hired by companies: 2.7% this quarter, compared with 3.9 and 3.3% in the previous quarters. In contrast, the upward trend in the use of skilled temporary and outsourced workers increases. In a scenario of uncertainty about growth, it seems that companies are being cautious and prefer to replace full-time employment by temporary and outsourced employment, said Gledson Carvalho, EESP's finance professor and co-director of the research, who also points out a smaller increase in wages and the difficulty reported by companies in finding employees with the desired qualification.  Brazilian optimism is still one of the world's largest  Despite concerns, Brazilian and Latin-American optimism about the economic outlook for the next 12 months is the largest in the world, and presents a declining trend. The study reveals that 46% of CFOs are less optimistic than they were in the previous quarter, while only 20% are more optimistic. John Graham, finance professor at Duke University and Coordinator of the Global Business Outlook survey, believes that American optimism has a positive influence on the Latin American scenario. This consistent increase in optimism in the United States is very important because it suggests that the country is on the path to a resumption of growth. Perhaps for this reason its economic partners in Latin America are so optimistic, Graham suggests.  Click to learn more about the research CFO Global Business Overview.