 SAO PAULO – Brazil’s industrial production decreased by 0.9 percent in February compared with the previous month, the Brazilian Institute for Geography and Statistics, or IBGE, said on Wednesday. Output was down 9.1 percent from February 2014, the largest inter-annual decline since July 2009. Production for January and February was off by 4.5 percent from the first two months of 2014. Eleven of 24 industrial sectors surveyed suffered declines in February compared with the previous month, while all but two sectors saw production drop from the levels of February 2014, the IBGE said. The Brazilian auto industry dipped 1.7 percent in February and production of computers, electronics and optical items fell 4.2 percent. Brazil’s industrial sector has been battered by the economic slowdown and factory output dropped 3.2 percent in 2014, the worst results since 2009. A recent survey by the Getulio Vargas Foundation found that only 27 percent of Brazilian firms are open to the idea of increasing investment in the next 12 months. |