The Brazilian Real fell to a new three-year low on Tuesday (May 22), closing at 2.08 to the US dollar, reports South American news agency mercopress.com.

Brazil's trade minister Fernando Pimentel told reporters that the new exchange rate – the lowest since May 2009 – was positive for exporters but "worrying" for importers.

Last week Brazil's currency dropped after the central bank purchased dollars to keep it weak and cut borrowing costs. This week's Real decline is attributed to growing concerns over Greece's possible exit from the Euro, the report said.

"We are facing an escalation of the international crisis," finance minister Guido Mantega is quoted as saying. "This demands that we redouble our efforts to maintain economic growth at a reasonable rate."

New rules announced on Monday (May 21) will free as many as Real18bn (US$8.8bn) for auto financing to revive Brazil's economy – Latin America's largest, the article said.