The Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva (PT) government's proposals to end tax advantages that allow richer people to pay less taxes will have a positive effect on the Brazilian economy, says Joseph Stiglitz, winner of the Nobel Prize in 2001.
"It's no surprise that the rich say: don't tax us because it will be bad for the economy. I would be surprised if they didn't say that. It's a selfish argument. But it has no economic basis", says the economist in an interview with Folha.
The Nobel winner was in Brazil this week for a series of events and meetings, including a meeting with Lula.
Stiglitz states that the slowdown in the global economy makes it urgent for Brazil to increase revenue, stimulate growth, and reduce interest rates.
He is optimistic about the US but highlights problems in the European and Chinese economies. "It is not clear whether President Xi [Jinping] is fit to manage them."
He also states that inflation fell in the USA and Brazil because of the normalization of supply and demand in the post-pandemic period, not because of the rise in interest rates. "The incredible thing about Brazil is how well it has done, given the bad policy of the Central Bank," he says.
Translated by Cassy Dias