Presidential candidate Romeu Zema of the Novo party said on Monday (24) that, if elected, he will guarantee that Brazil's minimum wage keeps pace with inflation, but stopped short of promising any real increase for workers. In an interview with Globo, the first in the network's series with presidential hopefuls, the former Minas Gerais governor also said he would "for now" leave minimum retirement ages unchanged.

According to G1, Zema tied any adjustment above inflation to economic performance and said he would keep the real gain linked to the growth of the previous two years if the economy "is doing well". The minimum wage now stands at R$ 1,621, and Finance Minister Dario Durigan has estimated R$ 1,741 for 2027 in the budget bill due in Congress by the end of the month; the final figure will only be known in December. Because pensions and social benefits are indexed to the minimum wage, the adjustment policy also affects millions of beneficiaries of the INSS, Brazil's social security institute.

In the same interview, Zema said his economic priority is to bring down the benchmark interest rate. "With a serious government, with credibility, fighting corruption and fraud, that rate falls to 6%. That alone will save the economy R$ 800 billion a year", he said, without detailing the fiscal adjustment measures he proposes.

Pensions

On social security, Zema said he does not intend, "for now", to raise minimum retirement ages. He did not rule out future changes, saying they would depend on factors such as rising life expectancy and greater formalization of the labor market. Asked about the rules for rural workers and the military, he also tied decisions to the outcome of the fiscal adjustment he plans to carry out, arguing that spending cuts, fighting fraud and corruption and a more efficient public administration could reduce the need for new changes to pension rules.

"Retirement will depend a lot on that. Now, Brazilians already work a lot. I don't want Brazilians working longer. I want Brazilians' income to rise", Zema said.

The interview was conducted by journalists Renata Vasconcellos and César Tralli at Globo's studios in Rio de Janeiro. The network invited the six best-placed candidates in a Quaest poll published on August 14, and the order was drawn by lot. Zema, who resigned as governor in March to run for president, opened the series; President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva (PT) is scheduled for Thursday (27) and senator Flávio Bolsonaro (PL) for Friday (28). The first round of the election takes place on October 4.