Antônio Delfim Netto

Antônio Delfim Netto (born May 1, 1928) is a Brazilian economist, former Minister of Finance, Agriculture, and Planning of Brazil, professor[3] and congressman. During his incumbency as Minister of Finance of Brazil, the country experienced the so-called Milagre Econômico (the Economic Miracle), a time of unprecedented economic growth.[3]

Antônio Delfim Netto
Federal Deputy for São Paulo[1]
In office 1 February 1987 – 1 February 2007
Constituency	At-large
Minister of the Department of Planning of the Presidency[2]
In office 15 August 1979 – 14 March 1985
President	João Figueiredo
Preceded by	Mário Henrique Simonsen
Succeeded by	João Sayad
Minister of Agriculture
In office 15 March 1979[3] – 15 August 1979[4]
President	João Figueiredo[3]
Preceded by	Alysson Paulinelli[3]
Succeeded by	Amaury Stabile[3]
Ambassador of Brazil to France[5]
In office 7 February 1975 – 10 February 1978
President	Ernesto Geisel[3]
Preceded by	Aurélio de Lira Tavares
Succeeded by	Ramiro Saraiva Guerreiro
Minister of Finance[6]
In office 17 March 1967 – 15 March 1974
President	Artur da Costa e Silva Emílio Garrastazu Médici
Preceded by	Eduardo Lopes Rodrigues
Succeeded by	Mário Henrique Simonsen
Personal details
Born	(1928-05-01) 1 May 1928[7] São Paulo, São Paulo, Brazil[8]
Political party	ARENA (1965–79) PDS (1979–93) PPR (1993–95) PPB (1995–2003) PP (2003–05) PMDB (2005–11) PP (2011–present) [3]
Alma mater	School of Economics, Business and Accounting of the University of São Paulo
Field	Monetarism[9] Estruturalism[10]
School or tradition	Monetarism

The Milagre Econômico overseen by Delfim Netto relied on a heterodox, developmentalist model.[11] The economic expansion relied on low wages, rapidly rising exports, and foreign capital inflows.[11] Delfim Netto originated the phrase "cake theory" in reference to this model: the cake had to grow before it could be distributed.[11] Although the "cake" in his metaphor did grow, it was highly unequally distributed.[11]