Brazil is "returning to normal" from COVID-19, says president

Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro said on Friday that the country is "returning to normal" after the impact of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.

Bolsonaro posted on social media about the creation of 131,010 formal jobs in Brazil in July, the first positive result since March.

"In July 2020, the country presented a positive balance of 131,010 new jobs. The great highlight was the processing industry, especially the manufacturing of food products and civil construction. Brazil is returning to normal," Bolsonaro wrote.

The Brazilian government predicts the labor market will continue to present positive data in the coming months. "The positive result of July is certainly the first of many," said Bruno Bianco, the special secretary of Social Security and Labor at the Ministry of Economy.

"There is a successive and significant improvement in the employment record and everything indicates that it will continue to be positive, and even more positive. We are seeing sectors improving and staying afloat, which is important for economic recovery. Improvement has certainly only just started and we will continue to surprise," he said.

The labor market has been hit hard by the pandemic, and in the first seven months of this year, Brazil reported 8.91 million layoffs.