Brazil

The Federative Republic of Brazil (República Federativa do Brasil in Portuguese) is the largest and most populous country in Latin America, and the fifth largest in the world. Spanning a vast area between central South America and the Atlantic Ocean, it borders Uruguay, Argentina, Paraguay, Bolivia, Peru, Colombia, Venezuela, Guyana, Suriname, France (French Guiana) — every South American nation except for Ecuador and Chile. Named after brazilwood, a tree highly valued by early colonists, Brazil is home to both extensive agricultural lands and rain forests. Exploiting vast natural resources and a large labor pool, it has the biggest GDP in South America (10th in the world) and is today South America's leading economic power and a regional leader. Portuguese is the national language of Brazil.

Economy

Main article: Economy of Brazil

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Possessing large and well-developed agricultural, mining, manufacturing, and service sectors, as well as a large labor pool, Brazil's GDP(PPP) outweighs that of any other Latin American country and the economy is expanding its presence in world markets. Major export products include coffee, soybeans, iron ore, orange juice, steel and airplanes.

Related Topics:
Agricultural - Mining - Manufacturing - Service sector - Latin America - Coffee - Soybean - Iron ore - Orange juice - Steel

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After crafting a fiscal adjustment program and pledging progress on structural reform, Brazil received a USD 41.5 billion IMF-led international support program in November 1998. http://www.canadianliberty.bc.ca/relatedinfo/BRAZIL'S_IMF_DISASTER.html In January 1999, the Brazilian Central Bank announced that the Real would no longer be pegged to the US dollar. This devaluation helped moderate the downturn in economic growth in 1999 that investors had expressed concerns about over the summer of 1998, and the country posted moderate GDP growth.

Related Topics:
IMF - 1999 - Real - US dollar - 1998 - GDP

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Economic growth slowed considerably in 2001 — to less than 2% — because of a slowdown in major markets, the hiking of interest rates by the Central Bank to combat inflationary pressures, and fears over the economic policies of the new government to be elected. Investor confidence was strong at the end of 2001, in part because of the strong recovery in the trade balance. Highly unequal income distribution remains a pressing problem.

Related Topics:
2001 - Inflation

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After Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva inauguration on 1 January 2003, there was some fear that his party radicals might provoke an economic aboutface and Brazil would undergo a financial crisis. However, Brazilian economy seems to have detached itself from politics and after a GDP decrease of 0.2% in 2003, Brazil has enjoyed a robust growth in 2004 and prospects for 2005 and 2006 also indicate significant growth.

Related Topics:
Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva - 1 January - 2003

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