October
03: Fernando Henrique Cardoso is elected president on the promise to reform Brazil's economy.

July
14-18: Jittery investors send the Sao Paulo Stock Exchange's key index tumbling 16 percent, causing a "samba effect" on markets from Mexico City to Buenos Aires.

November
11: President Fernando Henrique Cardoso announces a harsh austerity plan that will raise taxes and cut government spending severely, a move designed to stave off a repeat of the Asian currency crisis.

February
11: The lower house of Brazil's Congress approves an amendment that would revamp the country's social security system, providing President Cardoso with a major victory in its struggle to cut spending.

July
29: In the largest privatization move yet in the developing world, the Brazilian government sells its controlling interest in Telebras, the national telephone company, for $19.2 billion.

October
07: President Cardoso calls on citizens to brace themselves for cutbacks during what he terms a time of "temporary crisis."

28: The Brazilian government discloses the full details of its $84 billion fiscal austerity package, winning praise from the International Monetary Fund and the Clinton administration.

November
13: The IMF and the Clinton administration unveil a $41.5 billion loan package for Brazil, setting up a crucial test of their ability to halt the spread of global financial turmoil.

December
03: Investors send Brazil's key stock index down almost 9 percent after a rejection by Congress of part of President Cardoso's austerity package.

January
07: Brazil's stock and bond markets plummet as the governor of a major state escalates a confrontation with President Cardoso, threatening the president's efforts to stabilize the economy.

13: Brazil's central bank president resigns and the country is forced to allow its currency to slide, shaking markets worldwide.

15: The Brazilian government allows its currency, the real, to float freely again on world markets, sending its value tumbling about 20 percent below the level it had reached before devaluation began.

20: The lower house of Brazil's congress passes a major part of President Cardoso's austerity measure.