MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Brazil’s development bank speeding disbursements for infrastructure projects

Investment plans should increase in coming months says Claudio Leal, head of BNDES Planning Department

Lending by Brazil’s state development bank BNDES unexpectedly rose in the first five months of the year, led by disbursements to infrastructure projects, in an encouraging sign of investment recovery in Latin America's largest economy.

The bank lent a total 43.8 billion Reais (21.8bn dollars) in the January-to-May period, up 1% from the same period of 2011, of which 39% went for infrastructure and 26% for manufacturing according to a statement.

Requests for new credit jumped 27% in the period, with the number of eligible project for funding jumping 13% in a year-on-year basis.

According to Cláudio Leal, who heads BNDES' planning department, the fact that the indicators showed positive increases “are an indication that investment plans in general should increase in coming months.” That “should reflect in an accelerated pace of loan disbursements,” Leal added.

State banks such as BNDES and Banco do Brasil, the nation's biggest lender by assets, have this year increased their loan book faster than local private sector and foreign peers, under instructions of President Dilma Rousseff, who is struggling to kick-start growth in the emerging market powerhouse.

BNDES, often described by the government as the only major long-term lender in Brazil, doled out less credit last year after industrial companies reworked or cancelled requests for new loan.