Edla Lula
Reporter - Agência Brasil

Brasília - The secretary of the National Treasury, Joaquim Levy, and the president of the Central Bank, Henrique Meirelles, met yesterday (22), in New York, with representatives of credit rating agencies. The purpose of the meeting was to expound on measures adopted recently by the Brazilian government to improve the country's debt profile and lower its debt/Gross Domestic Product (GDP) ratio.

The government is trying to obtain an investment grade rating, which inspires confidence among foreign investors to commit money in a country. Brazil is currently classified by the Standard & Poor's and Fitch rating agencies as BB, three ranks below investment grade.

The measures Levy and Meirelles presented include the early repayment of Brazil's debt to the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the redemption of Brazilian debt titles.

Since 2004 Levy has been visiting investors not only in the United States, but in Europe and Asia, as well, to convince them to change the rating.

Yesterday, Levy and Meirelles also participated in a seminar in New York, "Series on the Brazilian Presidential Election: a Market Perspective," sponsored by the Brazilian-American Chamber of Commerce, Inc.

Translation: David Silberstein