Brazil's economy grew at its fastest rate in at least 14 years in the first three months of 2010, official figures have shown.

官方数据显示，巴西2010年第一季度经济增长率乃过去14年以来最高。

Its gross domestic product (GDP国内生产总值) surged by 9% compared with the same period a year earlier.

However, higher interest rates and the withdrawal¹ of some tax breaks are expected to cool growth eventually.

Brazil's economy is the largest in Latin America and the eighth-biggest in the world.

Agriculture and industry were among the growth sectors², the government said.

'Confirmation³'

Much of Brazil's economy is driven by domestic consumer demand rather than exports - which analysts⁴ say means it is relatively⁵ insulated from Europe's debt crisis（债务危机） and the projected slow recovery of the US.

"These figures are confirmation of what the market was talking about, a strong first quarter with very strong domestic demand despite the weak external sector," said Pedro Tuesta, senior Latin America economist⁶ at research firm 4Cast Inc.

The government said the annual growth was the swiftest pace seen since at least 1996.

Brazil's economy grew by 2.7% on the previous three months - again beating analysts' expectations.