The economy of Brazil is the world's seventh largest by nominal GDP and eighth largest by purchasing power parity. Brazil has moderately free markets and an inward-oriented economy. Its economy is the largest in Latin American nations and the second largest in the western hemisphere. Brazil is one of the fastest-growing major economies in the world with an average annual GDP growth rate of over 5 percent. In Brazilian reais, its GDP was estimated at R$ 3.143 trillion in 2009. The Brazilian economy has been predicted to become one of the five largest economies in the world in the decades to come.
Brazil is a member of diverse economic organizations, such as Mercosul, Unasul, G8+5, G20, WTO, and the Cairns Group. Its trade partners number in the hundreds, with 60 percent of exports mostly of manufactured or semimanufactured goods. Brazil's main trade partners in 2008 were: Mercosul and Latin America (25.9 percent of trade), EU (23.4 percent), Asia (18.9 percent), the United States (14.0 percent), and others (17.8 percent).[According to the World Economic Forum, Brazil was the top country in upward evolution of competitiveness in 2009, gaining eight positions among other countries, overcoming Russia for the first time, and partially closing the competitiveness gap with India and China among the BRIC economies. Important steps taken since the 1990s toward fiscal sustainability, as well as measures taken to liberalize and open the economy, have significantly boosted the country’s competitiveness fundamentals, providing a better environment for private-sector development. The owner of a sophisticated technological sector, Brazil develops projects that range from submarines to aircrafts and is involved in space research: the country possesses a satellite launching center and was the only country in the Southern Hemisphere to integrate the team responsible for the construction of the International Space Station (ISS). It is also a pioneer in many fields, including ethanol production.
Brazil, together with Mexico, has been at the forefront of the Latin American multinationals phenomenon by which, thanks to superior technology and organization, local companies have successfully turned global. These multinationals have made this transition notably by investing massively abroad, in the region and beyond, and thus realizing an increasing portion of their revenues internationally.
Brazil is also a pioneer in the fields of deep water oil research from where 73 percent of its reserves are extracted. According to government statistics, Brazil was the first capitalist country to bring together the ten largest car assembly companies inside its national territory.
The annual Brasil Investment Summit takes place in São Paulo and is the largest gathering in Brazil of international investment experts covering opportunities in alternative vehicles, infrastructure, and advanced trading strategies
Rank | 7th (nominal) / 8th (PPP) |
---|---|
Currency | Brazilian real (BRL, R$) |
Fiscal year | Calendar year |
Trade organisations | Unasul, WTO, Mercosul, G-20 and others |
Statistics | |
GDP | $2.09 trillion (nominal) $2.17 trillion (PPP) [1] |
GDP growth | 7.5% (2010)[2] |
GDP per capita | $10,471 (2010) (nominal; 55th)[1] $11,289 (2010) (PPP; 71st)[1] |
GDP by sector | agriculture: 5.5% industry: 28.7% services: 65,8% (2007)[3] |
Inflation (CPI) | 4.44% (Aug 2010)[4] |
Population below poverty line | 15.5% (2009)[5] |
Gini index | 49.3 (June 2009)[6] |
Labour force | 103.6 million (2010 est.) |
Labour force by occupation | agriculture: 20%, industry: 14% and services: 66% (2003 est.) |
Unemployment | 5.7% (November 2010)[7] |
Main industries | airplanes, steel; iron ore, coal; machine building; armaments; textiles and apparel; petroleum; cement; chemicals; fertilizers; consumer products, including footwear, toys, and electronics; food processing; transportation equipment, including automobiles, rail cars and locomotives, ships, and aircraft; electronics; telecommunications equipment, satellites, real estate, brewing, tourism |
Ease of Doing Business Rank | 127th[8] |
External | |
Exports | $201.9 billion (2010 est.)[9] |
Export goods | transport equipment, machinery, steel, airplanes, paper, electric machinery, iron ore, soybeans, footwear, coffee, autos, automotive parts, machinery |
Main export partners | China 15.3%, United States 9.6%, Argentina 9.2%, Netherlands 5.1%, Germany 4.0% (2010) |
Imports | $187.7 billion (2010 est.)[10] |
Import goods | machinery, electrical and transport equipment, chemical products, oil, automotive parts, electronics |
Main import partners | United States 15.0%, China 14.1%, Argentina 7.9%, Germany 6.9%, Japan 3.8% (2010) |
Gross external debt | $310.8 billion (31 December 2010 est.) |
Public finances | |
Public debt | 41.4% net debt of GDP (2010)[11] |
Revenues | $354.8 billion |
Expenses | $434.9 billion |
Credit rating | BBB+ (Domestic) BBB- (Foreign) BBB+ (T&C Assessment) (Standard & Poor's)[12] |
Foreign reserves | US$328.061 billion (April 2011)[13] |
Main data source: CIA World Fact Book All values, unless otherwise stated, are in US dollars |