Brazil's economy will grow 2.6 percent in 2018 after expanding 1 percent this year, ending one of the deepest recessions in the South American country's history, the Central Bank said in a report released Thursday.
      

The Central Bank revised its gross domestic product (GDP) forecast upward from the 0.70 percent growth for 2017 and 2.2 percent growth for next year projected in the previous quarterly report.
      

The upward revision is warranted by "the gradual recovery in economic activity during the course of this year and the outlook for continued growth in coming quarters," the Central Bank said.
      

The agriculture sector, which will end 2017 with growth of 12.8 percent, is spurring the expansion in GDP, while the service sector is expected to grow just 0.30 percent.
      

The manufacturing sector, meanwhile, is projected to contract 0.30 percent in 2017, the Central Bank said.
      

In 2018, however, the manufacturing sector is expected to lead the way for the Brazilian economy, growing 2.9 percent, while the service sector will expand at a 2.4 percent rate and agriculture will contract 0.40 percent as the grain harvest will come in below the record 2017 level, the Central Bank report said.
      

Economic growth in 2018 will also benefit, according to the Central Bank, from a 3 percent rise in consumer spending as incomes increase and the availability of credit expands.
      

Brazil's economy is slowly recovering after contracting 3.8 percent in 2015, the worst performance in 25 years, and 3.6 percent last year, marking the first time since 1931 that GDP fell for two consecutive years.