Dec. 20 (Bloomberg) -- Brazil had its first current account deficit in seven months in November as a growing economy boosted imports and a strengthening Brazilian currency helped reduce exports. Foreign direct investment was little changed.

The deficit in the current account, the broadest measure of a country's trade in goods and services, was $242 million compared with a surplus of $1.01 billion in October, the central bank said in Brasilia. Imports grew with the economy, which is expanding at its fastest pace in eight years, as companies bought raw materials such as coal and chemicals and components such as cellular telephone circuits to meet rising demand.

``With the economy growing, the trend is for current account surpluses to narrow,'' said Zeina Latif, an economist with HSBC Asset Management in Sao Paulo.

Brazil's currency gained 5 percent in November, the fourth- best performer of the 16 major currencies against the dollar. The stronger real helped exports fall 8 percent to $8.16 billion in November from $8.84 billion in October while imports rose 4 percent to $6.08 billion from $5.84 billion. The median estimate of 11 economists in a Bloomberg News survey had forecast a surplus of $185 million.

Brazil also raised its estimate for the 2004 current account surplus to $10.7 billion from $9.2 billion and cut its 2005 surplus forecast to zero from $100 million, the bank said. The bank expects a $300 million surplus this month, said Altamir Lopes, the bank's head of economic research.

Investment, Tax

Foreign direct investment, or investment from abroad in controlling stakes, joint ventures, or to expand existing facilities, was $1.32 billion in the month, the same as October. In December the bank expects $1.7 billion of foreign direct investment.

The current account deficit, the first since April, was also partly a result of an 88 percent increase in dividend and profit remittances by foreign companies to $962 million in November from $510 million in October.

Brazil's federal tax revenue rose 5 percent in November to 25.75 billion reais ($9.52 billion) from 24.52 billion reais a year earlier, Brazil's tax and customs agency said.

From January to November, the government collected 289.9 billion reais compared with 247.5 billion reais in the same period last year, the agency said in a statement distributed to journalists in Brasilia.

The country's currency rose 0.8 percent to 2.6910 reais per dollar at 9:49 a.m. New York time from 2.7120 late Dec. 17.

The real rose after the government said the country's trade surplus for the week ending Dec. 19 fell by almost a quarter to $643 million from $843 million.

Exports, though, fell only 1 percent to 2.05 billion, the second-largest weekly export figure in more than a month.

To contact the reporters on this story: Carlos Caminada at ccaminada1@bloomberg.net or Jeb Blount at at jblount@bloomberg.net

Last Updated: December 20, 2004 09:51 EST