The Monetary Policy Committee (Copom) of the Central Bank (BC) meets this Tuesday (16) and Wednesday to decide on the basic interest rate, the Selic, currently at 14.5%. The Copom will evaluate Brazilian and global economic indicators and decide whether there is room for a fall in interest rates or whether the rate will remain high for longer. At the last meeting, in April, Copom unanimously cut interest rates by 0.25 percentage points. This was the second time in a row that the committee reduced interest rates, but the cut occurred at a slower pace. As a justification, uncertainties regarding the development of geopolitical conflicts in the Middle East and expectations for rising inflation for a longer period were highlighted. Related news: Financial market raises Selic forecast to 13.75% per year. Senate CCJ approves financial autonomy of the Central Bank. Selic is considered the main interest rate reference in the country, with an impact on financing, loans, investments and credit for companies and consumers. In the minutes released, the committee gave no clues about the evolution of interest rates and reported that it is monitoring the conflict and the effects of a possible extension on inflation, but said that the continued uncertainty regarding the economic policy of the United States contributed to this scenario. “The Committee reaffirms serenity and caution in the conduct of monetary policy, so that future steps in the basic interest rate calibration process can incorporate new information that increases clarity about the depth and extent of conflicts in the Middle East, as well as their direct and indirect effects on the price level over time”, says the minutes. Given this scenario, the financial market started to raise the estimate for the Selic. The forecast, published in the Focus bulletin this Monday (15), is that by the end of 2026 interest rates will remain at 13.5% per year, compared to 13.75% last week. The bulletin also points out that inflation expectations, measured by the Broad National Consumer Price Index (IPCA), continue to rise, rising from 5.11% to 5.3% this year. With the economic pressures of the war in the Middle East, the forecast for this year's IPCA was raised for the fourteenth week in a row, exceeding the target range that should be pursued by the Central Bank. Established by the National Monetary Council (CMN), the target is 3%, with a tolerance interval of 1.5 percentage points. In other words, the lower limit is 1.5% and the upper limit is 4.5%. 6X1 scale This Tuesday, there is still the expectation that the plenary of the Chamber of Deputies will vote on Bill (PL) 1838/26, from the federal government, which ends the 6X1 scale and unlocks the voting agenda. Yesterday (15), the president of the Chamber of Deputies, Hugo Motta (Republicanos-PB) announced that he had called a meeting of the college of leaders to discuss the project for this afternoon. The objective is for the rapporteur of the proposal, federal deputy Léo Prates (Republicanos-BA), to clarify points in the text. "I called a meeting of leaders for tomorrow (16), at 2 pm. On that occasion, deputy @leopratesba will clarify points of his opinion on the PL that ends the 6x1 scale, despite having already approved the PEC on the reduction of working hours. With the consideration of the matter, we unlock the House's agenda", wrote Motta on a social network.  The project, forwarded by the government in April, defines the limit of working hours in the Consolidation of Labor Laws (CLT) at 40 hours per week, and eight daily hours, in addition to guaranteeing workers two paid weekly breaks of 24 consecutive hours. Because it was forwarded on an urgent basis, the proposal is blocking the agenda of the Chamber plenary, which can only deliberate on proposed amendments to the Constitution (PECs), draft Legislative Decree (PDLs) and urgent requests until the project is voted on. Prates must maintain the same points as the PEC approved at the end of May and which ended the 6X1 scale. The text reduces the weekly working hours from 44 to 40 hours and establishes a scale of five days of work and two days off (5x2). Currently, the PEC is under analysis in the Senate.