Brazil's GDP edged up 1.9 percent in the second quarter of 2009 from the first quarter, ending contractions in the previous two quarters, the Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics (IBGE) said Friday.

The positive growth means that Brazil has emerged from the recession caused by the international financial crisis.

 In the fourth quarter of 2008 and in the first quarter of 2009, the country had registered contractions of 3.6 percent and 0.8 percent, respectively.

 Compared to the second quarter of 2008, however, the GDP was down 1.2 percent. In the first half of 2009, Brazil's GDP registered a 1.5 percent fall from the same period in 2008, and in the past four quarters, the GDP was up 1.3 percent from the previous four-quarter period.

The Brazilian industry, which had registered a very sharp fall in the recession, rose 2.1 percent in the second quarter of the year. The tertiary sector registered a 1.2 percent expansion, while the agricultural sector shrank 0.1 percent.

The household consumption was up 2.1 percent in the period, the 23rd consecutive quarter of rises. The government spending, on the other hand, fell 0.1 percent in the second quarter.

Compared to the second quarter of 2008, the industrial sector shrank 7.9 percent; the agricultural sector shrank 4.2 percent; and the tertiary sector expanded 2.4 percent. The families' and government's consumption increased 3.2 and 2.2 percent respectively.