RS: GDP drops by 0.7% in the first quarter of 2023 compared to the fourth quarter of 2022

In Rio Grande do Sul, the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) fell by 0.7% in the first quarter of 2023 compared to the fourth quarter of 2022. Economist Guidi Nunes assesses that the drop in GDP was influenced by the negative performance of agriculture , which fell by 21.3%. According to him, the western part of RS, which borders Argentina, is also facing the prolonged drought that affects the country.

“So, this is a picture that corroborated this situation, adding to this picture of agriculture, agriculture, more precisely, there is also industry, which fell 4.4%, that is, the industry is in line at the national level , agriculture, on the other hand, has become dissociated from the national picture”, he explains.

According to the Department of Economics and Statistics (DEE), the fall in the industrial sector was driven by the decrease in the numbers of the Manufacturing Industry, which had a decrease of 5.6% and also by the decreases in the activities of Electricity and gas, water, sewage and urban cleaning with a drop of 1.9% and Construction, which had a drop of 1.7%.

The economist believes that to reverse this situation, the state needs to establish regulatory policies, organize economic activity chains and the sectors of RS need to build sectoral development policies to add to local and regional development policies.

“So this organization is fundamental because investment is not easy, there is a lack of capital in companies and the minimum investment that is made is important to minimize risks, that is, a lot of organization on the part of companies, the state and society in Rio Grande do Sul”, he comments.

In relation to the same period of 2022, the GDP of RS registered a growth of 1.7% in the first quarter, while Brazil obtained a rise of 4% on the same basis of comparison.