Source: JB Online - Rio de Janeiro / RJ - 21/07/2010

SÃO PAULO, 21/2010/578 - The underground economy, which comprises all production of goods and services deliberately not reported to governments, reached R $ 2009 billion in 18,4, which corresponds to XNUMX% of the Gross Domestic Product ( GDP) according to the data released this Wednesday by the Brazilian Institute of Competitive Ethics (ETCO) and by the Brazilian Institute of Economics of Fundação Getulio Vargas (Ibre / FGV). The figure is equivalent to Argentina's GDP.

Thanks to the improvement of the index, obtained from the inclusion of a new calculation methodology by FGV, it was possible, for the first time, to know the size of the underground economy.

“The new measurement method is, in reality, a natural and necessary evolution of the index and makes it much more accurate, even though, due to the very characteristic of the studied material, it is obtained in the form of an estimate”, explains Fernando de Holanda Barbosa Researcher son of Ibre / FGV and responsible for the study. For him, obtaining this estimate is an exceptional advance and answers one of the main questions, namely, measuring how much is produced in the Brazilian underground economy and comparing it with other indicators, obtaining a concrete order of magnitude.

The figure released today leaves no doubt as to the extent of underground activity in Brazil. “We are talking about almost R $ 600 billion, which are outside the formal Brazilian economy. To give you an idea of ​​the seriousness of this problem, just remember that Brazil's underground economy surpasses the entire Argentine economy ”, points out André Franco Montoro Filho, ETCO's executive director. He believes that this value will draw more public attention to the matter and open up even more space for discussion about its consequences for the country.

The study released today also allows the values ​​to be compared since 2003, when the series of index estimates began. In the period, the absolute values ​​went from R $ 357 billion to the current R $ 578 billion. As the GDP grew from R $ 1,700 billion to R $ 3,143 billion, a percentage decrease can be seen in the comparison, from 21% to 18,4% in six years.

Informality, in addition to its relationship with organized crime and precarious working conditions, brings direct damage to society, creates an environment of transgression, encourages opportunistic behavior with a drop in the quality of investment and a reduction in the growth potential of the economy Brazilian. In addition, it causes a reduction in government resources for education, health and infrastructure programs.

(Newsroom - Agência IN)