Brazil's public sector gross debt steady in January

BRASILIA, Feb 27 (Reuters) - Brazil's public sector gross debt held steady at 78.7% of gross domestic product (GDP) in January, central bank data showed on Friday, while economists polled by Reuters expected it to rise to 79.0% of GDP.

The public sector recorded a primary surplus of 103.689 billion reais ($20.17 billion) for the month, compared with the 103.2 billion reais surplus expected in the poll.

($1 = 5.1400 reais)