Policymakers have refuted claims of a credit crunch in Brazil and forecast a 7.6% rise in the market this year, which is lower than last year's 14% expansion due to higher borrowing costs.
Leftist President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva criticized the central bank's benchmark interest rate, which has been held at a six-year high of 13.75% since September, saying it contributed to putting the country on the brink of a credit crisis.
In March, bank lending spreads in non-earmarked credit
declined slightly to 31.5 percentage points, and a broad measure
of Brazilian consumer and business default ratios increased from
4.5% in February to 4.6%.
($1 = 5.0527 reais)
(Reporting by Marcela Ayres; Editing by Andrew Heavens, Elaine
Hardcastle)
