Brazil´s Travel Industry Keeps Soaring

Foreign tourists that visited Brazil during the first eight months of the ongoing year spent little more than $2.1 billion, up 36.4 percent from the same period of time in 2003.

According to statistics provided by the country´s Central Bank, the amount of money spent by foreign travelers in the country and the number of Brazilians traveling overseas combine for a $355 million surplus for the local leisure industry, compared to $87 million the South American nation came in for in the first eight months of last year. In 2003, Brazil welcomed 4.1 million foreign tourists that shelled out some $3.4 billion in all.

Brazil´s Tourism Minister Walfrido dos Mares Guia stated in an official press release that the local travel industry has eked out surpluses in every single month of 2004. "That shows we´ve been able to implement a good policy to lure more tourists to Brazil," he concluded.