The Ibovespa Index declined by 0.8% to close at 145,306 on Thursday, following a record high in the previous session. This drop was attributed to weaker performance in US markets and domestic economic indicators that dampened risk appetite. Notably, the US GDP for Q2 was revised significantly upwards, which pushed global yields higher and reduced the attractiveness of cyclical growth stocks. Additionally, mid-month domestic inflation accelerated to a year-over-year rate of 5.32%, reinforcing expectations that the Central Bank might maintain its restrictive policy stance for an extended period.
In terms of sector performance, Petrobras was among the leading decliners, with shares falling by 1.8%, influenced by declines in crude oil benchmarks. Major financial institutions, including Banco do Brasil, Santander, Itausa, and Bradesco, each experienced losses ranging from 1% to 1.5%. Cosan saw a significant drop of 6.3% after HSBC downgraded its rating to "moderate sell" due to weak earnings. Conversely, Vale's shares increased by 0.6%, buoyed by data from ship trackers indicating a rise in iron ore exports. Meanwhile, steel producers like CSN and Gerdau experienced losses due to a decrease in global steel prices.
