Brazilian Economic Pessimism Climbs in March Polls

Overview

• Datafolha finds 46% say the economy worsened since late 2025, up from 41%, while only 24% see improvement.
• Quaest/Genial reports 48% perceive deterioration over the past year as optimism for the next 12 months falls to 41% and expectations of worsening rise to 34%.
• Inflation worries dominate, with 61% in Datafolha expecting prices to increase and 58% in Quaest saying food costs rose.
• Purchasing power has eroded, as 64% tell Quaest they can buy less than a year ago and 39% in Datafolha expect their buying power to drop further.
• Perceptions on jobs darken despite IBGE’s 5.4% unemployment rate, with 50% in Quaest saying work is harder to find and 48% in Datafolha expecting unemployment to increase.