Economics

Optimism or Wishful Thinking? Brazil’s Recovery Has Bit of Both

  • Consumer and business sentiment jumped after Bolsonaro victory
  • Gap between expectations and reality has never been wider
People are seen inside a RJZ Cyrela showroom.Photographer: Evgeny Makarov/Bloomberg
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The real estate developer wouldn’t open its doors for another three hours, but already people were lined up to buy yet-to-be-built apartments in a middle-class neighborhood of Rio de Janeiro.

Marcelo Parreira, head of new products at RJZ Cyrela, felt relieved. Pre-dawn lines were unseen since Brazil sank into a deep recession in 2015, and that late-August launch was the company’s first since. Brazilians were turning more upbeat about the future with Jair Bolsonaro on his way toward winning the presidential election. Within a month, the company pre-sold all 176 units.