Brazil\'s Stock Market Precise Economic or Political

¶ … Brazil's stock market [...] precise economic or political events that contributed to either a significant rise or fall in the Brazilian stock market for the years of 2001 and 2002.

While the events of September 11, 2001 had an effect on global economies as a whole, Brazil's economy in 2001 was already in a downward spiral by September. The Brazilian stock market ended up down 25% by the end of 2001, due mostly to a financial crisis in neighboring Argentina. The two countries' economies were closely tied -- too closely, and Brazil struggled to step away from Argentina's influence, so the value of their money fell, and the government cut spending, which helped aid the stock market's plunge. In addition, an energy shortage in June 2001 caused rationing, which resulted in lower usage and consumer confidence, and the stock market suffered. Experts had expected the market to peak at 20,000 in 2001, but in only reached 18,000, and then headed downward. All of these events combined to crush the market in 2001.

If 2001 was bad for the Brazilian economy, 2002 was even worse. Brazil's currency, the real, plummeted in value 5.5% in one day in July. Brazil's foreign debt was the largest in the world, so the country posed a huge risk to other economies, especially the United States. Since the Brazilian money was devaluating so fast, the stock market understandably also fell. The currency ended up devalued by 35%, and the stock market fell another 17% to end the year a little over 11,000. These two years were two of the worst in Brazil's economic history, but the markets and the economy began to recover in 2003. The largest event contributing to Brazil's stock market crisis was the fiscal crisis and the devaluation of the real, which led to global worries that Brazil would never be able to repay its' global loans. A new president, elected in June 2002 helped turn the economy around by 2003.