Weekly Report - 27 March 2013 (WR-13-12)

BRAZIL | Strong internal demand increases commercial sales. The share of commercial sales in Brazil increased by 0.6% last January compared to a 0.4% decrease the previous December, the national statistics institute IBGE announced. In comparison to January 2012, sales rose by 5.9%, thus confirming that internal consumption remains the key driver of the Brazilian economy, reducing the effects set off by the continuing global recession, as internal demand has compensated for the fall in exports due to lower global demand.