For the president of the Central Bank, the collegiate’s reaction is that of a “transatlantic” not a jet-ski
The president of the Central Bank, Gabriel Galípolo, said this Monday (March 30, 2026) that the basic rate, the Selic, at a high level for a prolonged period allowed a “fat” in the management of monetary policy in the scenario of uncertainty with the war in the Middle East.
He once again said that the Central Bank’s movements are similar to that of a “transatlantic” and not a jet-ski. Galípolo participated in the event “”, promoted by , in São Paulo. He declared that the contractionary monetary policy has had an effect throughout 2026 on the economy, with a slowdown in economic activity.
The president of the Central Bank said that the monetary authority will always act calmly and “parsimonious” in monetary policy decisions.
“It is normal for the Central Bank to always be a little more on the conservative side of its reaction”said Gallipolo. He argued that the collegiate serves to reduce weights in the most “extreme”.
He exemplified that groups defended a Selic rate of 18% per year in 2025, while others did not want a base interest rate as high as 15%, a level that remained for 9 months.
Galípolo stated that maintaining the Selic at the current level for an extended period gave confidence within the market.
“This fat that was accumulated with a more conservative position throughout the last Copom meetings meant that, even in the face of new facts, these new facts did not change the situation as a whole, in light of what has been happening from the point of view of the transmission of monetary policy and the uncertainties regarding the effects of an oil supply shock”these.
At another point, Galípolo said: “Fat allowed us to gain time to see, to understand, to learn more”.
The Central Bank maintained Selic at 15% per year. Monetary policy has a lagged effect on the economy. The relevant horizon is 18 months, or 1 and a half years.
At the last meeting, the Copom (Monetary Policy Committee) chose to reduce the basic rate by 0.25 percentage points, to 14.75% per year. He stated that the cycle of cuts will be shorter than initially expected, and attributed the fact to the beginning of the .
The worsening of financial agents’ projections for the main macroeconomic indicators contributes to the perception that the monetary easing cycle will be less intense than previously predicted. This Monday (March 30, 2026), the Focus Bulletin reported that the median inflation estimate rose to 4.31% for 2026.
Itaú BBA has a projection of 4.50%, at the target ceiling. The bank also increased the estimate for the Selic rate from 12.25% to 13%.
