In twelve months, the primary deficit of the Brazilian public sector increased to 2.40% of GDP, while interest payments --driven by a rising debt stock and the associated cost-- reached 7.00%, the highest since June 2016.

Brazil's public debt as a percentage of Gross Domestic Product (GDP) rose to 76.0% in April, up from 75.7% the previous month, Central Bank data showed on Wednesday.

Interest payments was the main cause of the increase in the gross debt, both in monthly terms (+0.3 percentage points) and so far this year (+1.6 percentage points), the Central Bank reported.

The Brazilian public sector recorded a primary surplus of 6.69 billion reais (US$1.3 billion) in the month, lower than the 14.8 billion reais surplus predicted by economists surveyed by Reuters.

The result, pressured by the increase in public spending, also represented a deterioration compared to the primary surplus of 20.3 billion reais registered a year ago.

Over the last 12 months, the public sector primary deficit increased to 2.40% of GDP, while interest payments --inflated by a rising debt stock and associated costs-- reached 7.00%, the highest since June 2016.

The central bank has reduced interest rates by a total of 325 basis points since it began a monetary easing cycle in August, but the Selic reference rate (the Central Bank's main instrument to keep official inflation under control) remains high, at 10.50%.

The nominal deficit amounted to 9.41% of GDP, a significant increase from 5.79% in April 2023.