国际英语新闻：Brazil's GDP growth to top 7% this year: officials

RIO DE JANEIRO, Sept. 3 (Xinhua) -- Brazilian Finance Minister Guido Mantega said Friday the country's gross domestic product (GDP) would grow at least seven percent this year, the highest in 24 years if achieved.

In a separate statement, Central Bank President Henrique Meirelles said the Brazilian economy would grow 7.3 percent this year.

In the first half of 2010, Brazil's year-on-year GDP growth reached a record high of 8.9 percent, surpassing that of most other countries in the world.

Officials said the high growth rate did not lead to overheating.

The government set an inflation target of 4.5 percent for this year, with a margin of two percentage points. From January to July, Brazil reported an average inflation rate of 3.1 percent.

Brazil's GDP contracted by 0.2 percent last year due to the global finanical crisis.