If Brazilian Vice President Michel Temer takes power, former central bank President Henrique Meirelles would accept the position of finance minister under the condition he was given approval rights over members of the entire economic team, newspaper Folha de S. Paulo reported on Sunday.
Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff jumped to the defense of her embattled finance minister saying she would not be pressured into sacking him. Rousseff, fighting to save her second term presidency from threatened impeachment proceedings, said she was ignoring suggestions by the head of her own Workers' Party (PT) that Joaquim Levy should be dismissed.
Brazil's former central bank chief Henrique Meirelles said on Wednesday he was not invited to take over the finance ministry and insisted the government needs to push ahead with unpopular austerity measures to pull the economy out of recession.
Brazilian banker Luiz Carlos Trabuco Cappi, president of Bradesco, turned down an invitation from president Dilma Rousseff to occupy the Finance ministry as of next January first. According to the Sao Paulo financial publication Valor, there was no insistence on the issue from political sources.
Brazil’s central bank on Wednesday kept its benchmark rate at a record low 7.25% for the third straight meeting as policy makers seek to prop the anaemic economy which last year only advanced 0.9%.
Lazard Ltd. announced this week the appointment of Henrique Meirelles as Chairman, Lazard Americas, effective immediately. Meirelles was former President of the Central Bank of Brazil.
Brazilian policy makers kept their benchmark overnight rate unchanged on Wednesday after curbs on credit allowed central bank President Henrique Meirelles to leave anticipated rate increases for his successor.
Two of the strongest emerging economies Brazil and China announced Friday measures to withdraw liquidity tighten credit and contain inflation. Brazil’s “macro-prudent” measures are geared to cut on money circulation, while China said monetary emphasis will change from “relatively loose” to “prudent”.
Brazil’s President-elect Dilma Rousseff plans to maintain the central bank’s operational autonomy and also will keep the position of central bank president as a Cabinet-level post, according to reliable sources close to the leader.
Brazilian central bank president Henrique Meirelles will not accept any invitation to remain as head of the bank unless president-elect Dilma Rousseff gives him full guarantees of “absolute autonomy” in running the institution. He also rejects the idea of holding on the job during the first quarter of 2011 until a definitive successor is named.