Lula Governments: the consumption era?

ABSTRACT

The Lula governments (2003-2010) were labeled “the consumption era” and for excessive household indebtedness. At the least, this label is imprecise. The objective of this article is to analyse the period between 2003-2010 through objective information and supported by Post-Keynesians and Keynes’s theory. The conclusion was that consumption was only the starting point. In fact, during this period, the most important event was the growth of public and private investments. During both terms of the Lula government investments grew much more than consumption. Besides this, the level of Brazilian household debt grew rapidly, but this level cannot be considered excessive when compared with international standards. This article also shows that this indebtedness did not provoke the economic downturn in 2011.

KEYWORDS:
Lula Governments; Consumption; Private and public investment; Post-Keynesian approach