Federal state-owned companies have a deficit of R$656 million in 2023

Federal state-owned companies returned to the red with the government of Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva (PT), recording a primary deficit of R$656 million in 2023. The value, released this Wednesday by the Central Bank (BC), represents the worst result of Union companies since 2017.

In 2022, the same group of state-owned companies recorded a surplus of almost R$4.8 billion. The BC’s accounting does not include companies from the Petrobras and Eletrobras groups.

According to the BC, between 2018 and 2022 federal state-owned companies were almost always in surplus. During the period, the only primary deficit was recorded in 2020, the year of the pandemic, when the balance was negative by R$614 million.

Before that, these companies had deficit balance sheets in 11 of 12 years in the period from 2006 to 2017.

Primary result of federal state-owned companies (does not include Petrobras and Eletrobras groups). Source: Central Bank

In the sum of all state-owned companies in the country (federal, state and municipal), there was a primary deficit of almost R$2.3 billion. It was the first negative balance since 2016 and the worst result since 2015.

In 2022, the same companies had recorded a primary surplus of R$6.1 billion.