BRASILIA (Reuters) – Economists cut their 2019 Brazilian economic growth forecasts for a 14th consecutive week, according to a central bank survey on Monday, with Latin America’s largest economy now expected to grow no faster this year than it did in each of the last two.

The average forecast of around 100 financial institutions fell to 1.13% from 1.23% the week before, the central bank’s regular ‘FOCUS’ survey showed. That’s less than half the pace of growth predicted at the start of the year, and would match the subdued 1.1% rate of expansion in 2017 and 2018.

Official figures last week showed that the economy shrank in the first quarter by 0.2%, the first contraction since 2016. That weakness is set to spill over into the remainder of 2019, economists say, meaning the risk of recession is rising.

Earlier on Monday, data showed that growth in Brazilian manufacturing activity slowed to its weakest pace in ten months and virtually ground to a halt in May.

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