|
Economy - overview:
|
Possessing large and well-developed agricultural, mining, manufacturing, and service sectors, Brazil's economy outweighs that of all other South American countries and is expanding its presence in world markets. The maintenance of large current account deficits via capital account surpluses became problematic as investors became more risk averse to emerging markets as a consequence of the Asian financial crisis in 1997 and the Russian bond default in August 1998. After crafting a fiscal adjustment program and pledging progress on structural reform, Brazil received a $41.5 billion IMF-led international support program in November 1998. In January 1999, the Brazilian Central Bank announced that the real would no longer be pegged to the US dollar. The consequent devaluation helped moderate the downturn in economic growth in 1999, and the country posted moderate GDP growth in 2000. Economic growth slowed considerably in 2001-03 - to less than 2% - because of a slowdown in major markets and the hiking of interest rates by the Central Bank to combat inflationary pressures. New president DA SILVA, who took office 1 January 2003, has given priority to reforming the complex tax code, trimming the overblown civil service pension system, and continuing the fight against inflation.
|
|
GDP:
|
purchasing power parity - $1.376 trillion (2002 est.)
|
|
GDP - real growth rate:
|
1.5% (2002 est.)
|
|
GDP - per capita:
|
purchasing power parity - $7,600 (2002 est.)
|
|
GDP - composition by sector:
|
agriculture: 8%
industry: 36%
services: 56% (2001 est.)
|
|
Population below poverty line:
|
22% (1998 est.)
|
|
Household income or consumption by percentage share:
|
lowest 10%: 0.7%
highest 10%: 48% (1998)
|
|
Distribution of family income - Gini index:
|
60.7 (1998)
|
|
Inflation rate (consumer prices):
|
8.3% (2002)
|
|
Labor force:
|
79 million (1999 est.)
|
|
Labor force - by occupation:
|
services 53%, agriculture 23%, industry 24%
|
|
Unemployment rate:
|
6.4% (2001 est.)
|
|
Budget:
|
revenues: $100.6 billion
expenditures: $91.6 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (2000)
|
|
Industries:
|
textiles, shoes, chemicals, cement, lumber, iron ore, tin, steel, aircraft, motor vehicles and parts, other machinery and equipment
|
|
Industrial production growth rate:
|
2.3% (2002 est.)
|
|
Electricity - production:
|
321.2 billion kWh (2001)
|
|
Electricity - production by source:
|
fossil fuel: 8.3%
hydro: 82.7%
other: 4.6% (2001)
nuclear: 4.4%
|
|
Electricity - consumption:
|
335.9 billion kWh (2001)
|
|
Electricity - exports:
|
0 kWh (2001)
|
|
Electricity - imports:
|
37.19 billion kWh; note - supplied by Paraguay (2001)
|
|
Oil - production:
|
1.561 million bbl/day (2001 est.)
|
|
Oil - consumption:
|
2.199 million bbl/day (2001 est.)
|
|
Oil - exports:
|
NA (2001)
|
|
Oil - imports:
|
NA (2001)
|
|
Oil - proved reserves:
|
8.507 billion bbl (37257)
|
|
Natural gas - production:
|
5.95 billion cu m (2001 est.)
|
|
Natural gas - consumption:
|
9.59 billion cu m (2001 est.)
|
|
Natural gas - exports:
|
0 cu m (2001 est.)
|
|
Natural gas - imports:
|
3.64 billion cu m (2001 est.)
|
|
Natural gas - proved reserves:
|
221.7 billion cu m (37257)
|
|
Agriculture - products:
|
coffee, soybeans, wheat, rice, corn, sugarcane, cocoa, citrus; beef
|
|
Exports:
|
$59.4 billion f.o.b. (2002 est.)
|
|
Exports - commodities:
|
transport equipment, iron ore, soybeans, footwear, coffee, autos
|
|
Exports - partners:
|
US 23.8%, Argentina 8.5%, Germany 5%, China 4.3%, Netherlands 4.2% (2002)
|
|
Imports:
|
$46.2 billion f.o.b. (2002)
|
|
Imports - commodities:
|
machinery, electrical, and transport equipment, chemical products, oil
|
|
Imports - partners:
|
US 23.3%, Argentina 12.6%, Germany 8.7%, France 5.2% (2002)
|
|
Debt - external:
|
$222.4 billion (2002)
|
|
Economic aid - recipient:
|
$30 billion IMF disbursement (2002)
|
|
Currency:
|
real (BRL)
|
|
Currency code:
|
BRL
|
|
Exchange rates:
|
reals per US dollar - 2.92 (2002), 2.36 (2001), 1.83 (2000), 1.81 (1999), 1.16 (1998)
note: from October 1994 through 14 January 1999, the official rate was determined by a managed float; since 15 January 1999, the official rate floats independently with respect to the US dollar
|
|
Fiscal year:
|
calendar year
|
