The macro-policy framework, established in the late 1990s and based on inflation targeting, a flexible exchange rate and rules-based fiscal policy, has worked well. Inflation, public debt and vulnerability to exchange-rate risks have come down markedly, and Brazil had the fiscal space to use counter-cyclical measures to cushion the 2008-09 downturn. Looking forward, sound stabilisation policies will help the country to achieve strong economic performance in a new environment in which population will age at a rapid pace, heavy reliance on oil resources will increase revenue volatility and uncertainties regarding the external environment are higher, possibly permanently.