Brasília, May 11, 2004 (Agência Brasil) - The industrial sector used 81.9% of its installed capacity in March. This was the best performance in the past 15 months. The increase represents a 2.4% improvement over February, according to a study by the National Confederation of Industry (CNI). The statistic indicates a reduction in the sector's idle capacity.

The study shows that, when seasonal adjustments are eliminated, capacity use came to 81.3%. This means that industry is back at the same level as two years ago, when the economy was dealt a blow by the unrest surrounding presidential elections. During the first three months of 2004, capacity use in the industrial sector averaged 80.8%.

Greatest expansion occurred in the states of Espírito Santo, Ceará, Amazonas, Minas Gerais, and Rio Grande do Sul On the other hand, there was a reduction in the use of installed industrial capacity in the states of Goiás and Paraná in March.

Despite the expansion, the coordinator of the CNI study, Renato da Fonseca, said that the improvement registered in the sector still does not satisfy entrepreneurs. "We had strong growth expectations at the beginning of the year, because the economic fundamentals were already practically resolved. Unfortunately, the reduction of interest rates was interrupted at the beginning of the year, and this resulted not necessarily in an interruption of growth, but a significant decline in the pace of growth," he explains.

Translator: David Silberstein