Here we go....
Henry if you read this what is your opinion of where this well end?
Copyright (C) The Wall Street Journal
For Private Use only
January 13, 1999
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Brazilian Central Bank Chief
Resigns Amid Economic Woes
An INTERACTIVE JOURNAL News Roundup
The president of Brazil's central bank resigned on Wednesday, one day after the country's president sought to calm investors by pledging the nation would honor all its foreign-debt obligations.
Citing personal and professional reasons, Gustavo Franco, said he was leaving his post in a speech in Brasilia, the capital. "I feel an obvious tiredness after five years of nonstop work [in the public sector]," he said. "It's time to give room for new people to consolidate the Real Plan."
The news shook investors world-wide, pushing share prices sharply lower across Europe and foreshadowing a weak start to trading later in the day on Wall Street. Investors have been fearful that economic troubles will boil over in Brazil, where major international banks have a huge business exposure.
Many investors have been concerned that Brazil will devalue its currency, the real. The central bank did nudge the so-called trading band for the currency lower on Wednesday, but the move was anticipated and the new trading level was near expectations.
The so-called wide band was set at 1.20 reals to 1.32 reals, from 1.12 reals to 1.22 reals previously, a central bank spokeswoman said. The wide band was last adjusted on Jan. 20, 1998, after being held at 1.05 reals to 1.14 reals for nearly a year.
Brazil has seen a massive flight of capital across its borders of late, as investors have become shaken by the country's ability to come to grips with economic troubles. The country's economic growth has been hamstrung by high interest rates, which the government has been reluctant to cut for fears of exacerbating weakness in the real.
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