According to CNN Brasil, the Monetary Policy Committee (Copom) of Brazil's central bank cut its benchmark interest rate by 0,25 percentage point to 14% on Wednesday, 5 August 2026. The decision was unanimous among the monetary authority's board and had been widely expected by financial markets, marking the fourth consecutive reduction in the base rate known as the Selic.
The current easing cycle began in March this year, when the Selic moved down from 15%, a level held since June 2025, to 14,75%. In its statement, the central bank said the total size of the rate calibration cycle will be set in light of new information aimed at ensuring inflation converges to target. The board also flagged inflation risks as higher than usual, with an upward asymmetry, according to the committee's communique cited by CNN Brasil.
Despite global concern over the war in the Middle East, the Brazilian real showed no sharp moves since the previous Copom meeting, hovering around 5,10 reais per dollar, CNN Brasil reported. Market forecasts collected in the central bank's Focus survey point to weaker GDP growth in 2026 and 2027, horizons that tend to feel the delayed effect of restrictive monetary policy. For next year, the GDP forecast stands at growth of 1,57%, the second consecutive week of downward revision.
Based on Copom options traded on the B3 exchange, derivative contracts that allow investors to price expected moves in the Selic, the market now sees one more rate cut at the next Copom meeting, scheduled for 15 and 16 September, according to CNN Brasil.