Rio de Janeiro, March 11 (DPA) The Brazilian economy contracted for the first time in 17 years in 2009, falling by 0.2 per cent, the Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics (IBGE) said Thursday.

It was the first annual contraction of gross domestic product since 1992.

Brazil's GDP fell to 3.1 trillion real ($41.77 trillion), leaving the country of 199 million with a per capita GDP of $9.263, the institute said. In 2008, Brazil's GDP stood at 2.9 trillion real ($1.8 trillion).

The drop reflects the effects of the global economic and financial crisis, which were strongly felt in the South American giant in the first few months of 2009. However, fourth quarter figures show a vigorous recovery.

According to the IBGE report, GDP grew by 2 percent in the October to December period over the previous quarter. Growth was as high as 4.3 percent when compared with the same quarter of the previous year, the most acute phase of the crisis.

Brazilian industry contracted by 5.5 percent in 2009, although it recovered towards the end of the year, while agriculture also shrank by 5.2 percent. Only the service sector grew, by 2.6 percent.