Rio, May 28, 2003 (Agência Brasil - ABr) - A Central Bank (BC) study shows that, last month, the interest rates on special checking reached the highest level since April, 1999, when they attained 193.65%. Between March and April, the annual rate rose from 177.9% to 178.5%. In the first four months of this year, the rate charged by banks has already risen 18.8%.

According to the head of the Economic Department of the Central Bank, Altamir Lopes, the interest rate spread on special checking -- the difference between the rate that banks charge and what they pay to obtain funds in the market -- accompanied the upward movement and arrived at 153.8%. The principal component of this percentage, according to the BC, is bank profits.

Special checking continues to be used by the population to complement their income, to make up for the loss in purchasing power. (DAS)