Brazil Inflation Rate (IPCA, 12 months) and Selic Target Rate

What this number is

The change in Brazil's Broad National Consumer Price Index (IPCA) accumulated over the last 12 months, as compiled by the IBGE, the national statistics institute, and published around the tenth of each month for the month before. This page reads the series from the Banco Central do Brasil's SGS time-series system (series 13522). The Selic target rate set by the central bank's Monetary Policy Committee (Copom) is shown beside it with the date of the decision that set it.

Why it matters

The Banco Central do Brasil targets 3% on the IPCA with a 1.5-point tolerance band, and the Selic is the policy rate it moves to get there. Brazil carries one of the highest real interest rates among large economies, which is why the real and Brazilian local bonds are a core carry trade and why EWZ and Brazilian ADRs react to every Copom decision. Brazil is also our second-largest source of readers.

Questions readers ask

What is the difference between IPCA and INPC?

Both are IBGE price indices. The IPCA covers households earning up to 40 minimum wages and is the inflation target measure; the INPC covers households earning up to five minimum wages and is used for wage and benefit adjustments. Headlines and this page use the IPCA.

When does the Copom meet?

Eight times a year, with the decision on the Wednesday of a two-day meeting at 18:30 Brasilia time and the minutes the following Tuesday. The Selic beside the chart carries the date the current target took effect.

How reliable is the IPCA series?

The IBGE has published the IPCA on a consistent methodology since 1980, with periodic weight updates from the household budget survey (the last in 2020). Comparisons across a weight update are noted in our coverage; there is no history of political intervention in the series.