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| 1998, Oct. 4 |
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| Fernando Henrique Cardoso was reelected president of Brazil for another four-year term. | 1 |
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| 1999, Jan |
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| The Asian economic crisis began to spread through Brazil. During 1999 Brazil let its currency devaluate by as much as 40 percent. As Cardoso tightened Brazil's economy, the austerity measures greatly damaged his voter popularity; yet Brazil saw a strong economic rebound in 2000. | 2 |
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| April 22 |
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| After the IMF had released the remaining funds from its 1998 aid package one month earlier, more steps were taken to bolster Brazil's weakening economy. Brazil sold $2 billion in bonds on the world market to try to strengthen international confidence in its currency; former president of the Central Bank Francisco Lopes was arrested and later freed on charges of corruption, alleged to have taken place prior to his January removal from office. | 3 |
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| June 29 |
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| A two-day international summit between the EU and Mercosur met in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, to discuss gradual free-trade efforts between Europe and South America. The target date for establishing a Free Trade Area of the Americas (FTAA) was 2005. | 4 |
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| Aug. 26 |
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| Tens of thousands marched on Brasilia, the nation's capital, protesting Pres. Cardoso's austerity efforts and calling for his resignation. Popular support remained low for Cardoso, even with the relative improvement of the economy during the year 2000. | 5 |
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