Similarly, Brazil’s Real Plan initially pegged the Brazilian real to the U.S. dollar. Inflation fell from 2,500 percent in 1993 to 2.5 percent in 1998. Trade and investment liberalization encouraged investment in Brazil, but pent-up demand for capital and consumer goods caused the country’s merchandise balance to drop from a surplus of US$10.5 billion in 1994 to a deficit of US$6.3 billion in 1998. The Asian financial crisis in mid-1997 caused foreign investors to worry about the future of other developing countries. Foreign capital fled Brazil, and the country’s BOP deteriorated. A subsequent recession, augmented by the failure of the Brazilian Congress to pass key spending reforms, further eroded investor confidence in the country. Brazil’s foreign exchange reserves continued to dwindle. The government responded by announcing a change to the free float of the rael. The real plummeted against the dollar and consequently plummeted against the Argentine peso.