Rio, November 25, 2002 (Agência Brasil - ABr) - The Central Bank (BC) released today the first report on financial stability produced by the Supervision and Economic Policy areas of the bank. The document, containing 180 pages, was presented at a seminar for representatives of banking and financial institutions that operate in the country, at the Central Bank's headquarters in Rio de Janeiro.

Armínio Fraga, president of the BC, opened the seminar by recalling the international financial crises of the past decade and said that the government's financial policy enabled the Brazilian market to react well to all these moments. According to Fraga, "the Brazilian financial system scored a 10 in the sector's stress test, because, if we had detected any sign whatever of financial weakness, it would have been dramatic."

Armínio Fraga also said that, in a sense, the country should maintain this rhythm of reaction and financial stability, since "the next administration's proposals are promising." (DAS)