Cristiane Ribeiro
Reporter - Agência Brasil

Rio - Brazil's Gross Domestic Product (GDP) went down in the third quarter of this year for the first time since the first quarter of 2003. The data released today (30) by the Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics (IBGE) show that the sum of goods and services produced in the country dropped 1.2% in the period between July and September in comparison with the second quarter of the year. Nevertheless, when compared with the third quarter of 2004, the third-quarter results represent a 1% improvement.

From January to September, the country's economy grew 2.6% in relation to the same period last year. The IBGE informs that the third-quarter 2005 results, in comparison to the previous quarter, evidence the impact of lackluster performances in agriculture, which registered a 3.4% decline, and industry, which was off 1.2%. The service sector held steady.

Translation: David Silberstein