Rio, 2 (Agência Brasil - ABr) – The executive director of the Fecomércio Institute of Rio de Janeiro, Luiz Roberto Cunha, said yesterday that the 8th anniversary of the Real Plan is an occasion for celebrations, "because Brazil has never had such a long period with stable prices."

Cunho said that, as could be expected in the globalized economy, there were problems with the Real Plan, among them low growth and a high unemployment rate, but that other indicators had improved since the introduction of the plan, including in the social area. Cunha said the great challenge is to maintain social programs without throwing away stability and low inflation rates. (AB)