Legend:
 Definition
 Field Listing
 Rank Order
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Background:
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Following three centuries under the rule of Portugal, Brazil became an independent nation in 1822 and a republic in 1889. By far the largest and most populous country in South America, Brazil overcame more than half a century of military intervention in the governance of the country when in 1985 the military regime peacefully ceded power to civilian rulers. Brazil continues to pursue industrial and agricultural growth and development of its interior. Exploiting vast natural resources and a large labor pool, it is today South America's leading economic power and a regional leader. Highly unequal income distribution remains a pressing problem.
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Location:
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Eastern South America, bordering the Atlantic Ocean
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Geographic coordinates:
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10 00 S, 55 00 W
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Map references:
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South America
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Area:
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total: 8,511,965 sq km
land: 8,456,510 sq km
water: 55,455 sq km
note: includes Arquipelago de Fernando de Noronha, Atol das Rocas, Ilha da Trindade, Ilhas Martin Vaz, and Penedos de Sao Pedro e Sao Paulo
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Area - comparative:
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slightly smaller than the US
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Land boundaries:
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total: 16,885 km
border countries: Argentina 1,261 km, Bolivia 3,423 km, Colombia 1,644 km, French Guiana 730.4 km, Guyana 1,606 km, Paraguay 1,365 km, Peru 2,995 km, Suriname 593 km, Uruguay 1,068 km, Venezuela 2,200 km
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Coastline:
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7,491 km
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Maritime claims:
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territorial sea: 12 nm
contiguous zone: 24 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
continental shelf: 200 nm or to edge of the continental margin
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Climate:
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mostly tropical, but temperate in south
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Terrain:
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mostly flat to rolling lowlands in north; some plains, hills, mountains, and narrow coastal belt
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Elevation extremes:
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lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: Pico da Neblina 3,014 m
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Natural resources:
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bauxite, gold, iron ore, manganese, nickel, phosphates, platinum, tin, uranium, petroleum, hydropower, timber
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Land use:
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arable land: 6.93%
permanent crops: 0.89%
other: 92.18% (2005)
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Irrigated land:
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29,200 sq km (2003)
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Natural hazards:
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recurring droughts in northeast; floods and occasional frost in south
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Environment - current issues:
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deforestation in Amazon Basin destroys the habitat and endangers a multitude of plant and animal species indigenous to the area; there is a lucrative illegal wildlife trade; air and water pollution in Rio de Janeiro, Sao Paulo, and several other large cities; land degradation and water pollution caused by improper mining activities; wetland degradation; severe oil spills
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Environment - international agreements:
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party to: Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic-Marine Living Resources, Antarctic Seals, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands, Whaling
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements
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Geography - note:
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largest country in South America; shares common boundaries with every South American country except Chile and Ecuador
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Population:
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188,078,227
note: Brazil conducted a census in August 2000, which reported a population of 169,799,170; that figure was about 3.3% lower than projections by the US Census Bureau, and is close to the implied underenumeration of 4.6% for the 1991 census; estimates for this country explicitly take into account the effects of excess mortality due to AIDS; this can result in lower life expectancy, higher infant mortality and death rates, lower population and growth rates, and changes in the distribution of population by age and sex than would otherwise be expected (July 2006 est.)
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Age structure:
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0-14 years: 25.8% (male 24,687,656/female 23,742,998)
15-64 years: 68.1% (male 63,548,331/female 64,617,539)
65 years and over: 6.1% (male 4,712,675/female 6,769,028) (2006 est.)
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Median age:
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total: 28.2 years
male: 27.5 years
female: 29 years (2006 est.)
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Population growth rate:
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1.04% (2006 est.)
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Birth rate:
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16.56 births/1,000 population (2006 est.)
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Death rate:
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6.17 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.)
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Net migration rate:
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-0.03 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2006 est.)
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Sex ratio:
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at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 0.98 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.7 male(s)/female
total population: 0.98 male(s)/female (2006 est.)
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Infant mortality rate:
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total: 28.6 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 32.3 deaths/1,000 live births
female: 24.7 deaths/1,000 live births (2006 est.)
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Life expectancy at birth:
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total population: 71.97 years
male: 68.02 years
female: 76.12 years (2006 est.)
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Total fertility rate:
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1.91 children born/woman (2006 est.)
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HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate:
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0.7% (2003 est.)
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HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS:
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660,000 (2003 est.)
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HIV/AIDS - deaths:
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15,000 (2003 est.)
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Nationality:
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noun: Brazilian(s)
adjective: Brazilian
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Ethnic groups:
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white 53.7%, mulatto (mixed white and black) 38.5%, black 6.2%, other (includes Japanese, Arab, Amerindian) 0.9%, unspecified 0.7% (2000 census)
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Religions:
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Roman Catholic (nominal) 73.6%, Protestant 15.4%, Spiritualist 1.3%, Bantu/voodoo 0.3%, other 1.8%, unspecified 0.2%, none 7.4% (2000 census)
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Languages:
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Portuguese (official), Spanish, English, French
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Literacy:
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definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 86.4%
male: 86.1%
female: 86.6% (2003 est.)
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Country name:
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conventional long form: Federative Republic of Brazil
conventional short form: Brazil
local long form: Republica Federativa do Brasil
local short form: Brasil
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Government type:
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federative republic
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Capital:
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name: Brasilia
geographic coordinates: 15 47 S, 47 55 W
time difference: UTC-3 (2 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time)
daylight saving time: +1hr, begins third Sunday in October; ends third Sunday in February
note: Brazil is divided into four time zones, including one for the Fernando de Noronha islands
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Administrative divisions:
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26 states (estados, singular - estado) and 1 federal district* (distrito federal); Acre, Alagoas, Amapa, Amazonas, Bahia, Ceara, Distrito Federal*, Espirito Santo, Goias, Maranhao, Mato Grosso, Mato Grosso do Sul, Minas Gerais, Para, Paraiba, Parana, Pernambuco, Piaui, Rio de Janeiro, Rio Grande do Norte, Rio Grande do Sul, Rondonia, Roraima, Santa Catarina, Sao Paulo, Sergipe, Tocantins
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Independence:
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7 September 1822 (from Portugal)
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National holiday:
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Independence Day, 7 September (1822)
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Constitution:
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5 October 1988
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Legal system:
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based on Roman codes; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction
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Suffrage:
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voluntary between 16 and 18 years of age and over 70; compulsory over 18 and under 70 years of age; note - military conscripts do not vote
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Executive branch:
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chief of state: President Luiz Inacio LULA DA SILVA (since 1 January 2003); Vice President Jose ALENCAR (since 1 January 2003); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government
head of government: President Luiz Inacio LULA DA SILVA (since 1 January 2003); Vice President Jose ALENCAR (since 1 January 2003)
cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the president
elections: president and vice president elected on the same ticket by popular vote for a single four-year term; election last held 1 October 2006 with runoff 29 October 2006 (next to be held 3 October 2010 and, if necessary, 31 October 2010)
election results: Luiz Inacio LULA DA SILVA (PT) reelected president - 60.83%, Geraldo ALCKMIN (PSDB) 39.17%
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Legislative branch:
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bicameral National Congress or Congresso Nacional consists of the Federal Senate or Senado Federal (81 seats; 3 members from each state and federal district elected according to the principle of majority to serve eight-year terms; one-third elected after a four-year period, two-thirds elected after the next four-year period) and the Chamber of Deputies or Camara dos Deputados (513 seats; members are elected by proportional representation to serve four-year terms)
elections: Federal Senate - last held 1 October 2006 for one-third of the Senate (next to be held October 2010 for two-thirds of the Senate); Chamber of Deputies - last held 1 October 2006 (next to be held October 2010)
election results: Federal Senate - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - PFL 6, PSDB 5, PMDB 4, PTB 3, PT 2, PDT 1, PSB 1, PL 1, PPS 1, PRTB 1, PP 1, PCdoB 1; total seats following election - PFL 15, PMDB 15, PSDB 13, PT 10, PDT 5, PTB 4, PSB 3, PL 3, PCdoB 2, PRB 1, PPS 1, PRTB 1, PP 1, PSOL 1; Chamber of Deputies - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - PMDB 89, PT 83, PFL 65, PSDB 65, PP 42, PSB 27, PDT 24, PL 23, PTB 22, PPS 21, PCdoB 13, PV 13, PSC 9, other 17
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Judicial branch:
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Supreme Federal Tribunal (11 ministers are appointed for life by the president and confirmed by the Senate); Higher Tribunal of Justice; Regional Federal Tribunals (judges are appointed for life); note - though appointed "for life," judges, like all federal employees, have a mandatory retirement age of 70
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Political parties and leaders:
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Brazilian Democratic Movement Party or PMDB [Federal Deputy Michel TEMER]; Brazilian Labor Party or PTB [Roberto JEFFERSON]; Brazilian Renewal Labor Party or PRTB [Jose Levy FIDELIX da Cruz]; Brazilian Republican Party or PRB [Vitor Paulo Araujo DOS SANTOS]; Brazilian Social Democracy Party or PSDB [Senator Tasso JEREISSATI]; Brazilian Socialist Party or PSB [Governor Eduardo Henrique Accioly CAMPOS]; Communist Party of Brazil or PCdoB [Jose Renato RABELO]; Democratic Labor Party or PDT [Carlos Roberto LUPI]; Democratic Socialist Party or PSD [Luis Marques MENDES]; Freedom and Socialism Party or PSOL [Heloisa HELENA]; Green Party or PV [Jose Luiz de Franca PENNA]; Humanist Party of Solidarity or PHS [leader NA]; Partido Municipalista Renovador or PMR [Natal Wellington Rodrigues FURUCHO]; Party of the Republic or PR [Sergio TAMER]; Popular Socialist Party or PPS [Federal Deputy Roberto FREIRE]; Progressive Party or PP [Federal Deputy Pedro CORREA]; Workers' Party or PT [Ricardo Jose Ribeiro BERZOINI]
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Political pressure groups and leaders:
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Landless Worker's Movement; labor unions and federations; large farmers' associations; religious groups including evangelical Christian churches and the Catholic Church
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International organization participation:
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AfDB, BIS, CAN (associate), CSN, FAO, G-15, G-24, G-77, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITU, ITUC, LAES, LAIA, Mercosur, MIGA, MINUSTAH, NAM (observer), NSG, OAS, OPANAL, OPCW, PCA, RG, UN, UN Security Council (temporary), UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNITAR, UNMIL, UNMIS, UNMOVIC, UNOCI, UNWTO, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO
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Diplomatic representation in the US:
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chief of mission: Ambassador Antonio de Aguiar PATRIOTA
chancery: 3006 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008
telephone: [1] (202) 238-2700
FAX: [1] (202) 238-2827
consulate(s) general: Boston, Chicago, Houston, Los Angeles, Miami, New York, San Francisco
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Diplomatic representation from the US:
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chief of mission: Ambassador Clifford M. SOBEL
embassy: Avenida das Nacoes, Quadra 801, Lote 3, Distrito Federal Cep 70403-900, Brasilia
mailing address: Unit 3500, APO AA 34030
telephone: [55] (61) 3312-7000
FAX: [55] (61) 3225-9136
consulate(s) general: Rio de Janeiro, Sao Paulo
consulate(s): Recife
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Flag description:
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green with a large yellow diamond in the center bearing a blue celestial globe with 27 white five-pointed stars (one for each state and the Federal District) arranged in the same pattern as the night sky over Brazil; the globe has a white equatorial band with the motto ORDEM E PROGRESSO (Order and Progress)
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Economy - overview:
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Characterized by 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. From 2001-03 real wages fell and Brazil's economy grew, on average only 2.2% per year, as the country absorbed a series of domestic and international economic shocks. That Brazil absorbed these shocks without financial collapse is a tribute to the resiliency of the Brazilian economy and the economic program put in place by former President CARDOSO and strengthened by President LULA DA SILVA. Since 2004, Brazil has enjoyed continued growth that yielded increases in employment and real wages. The three pillars of the economic program are a floating exchange rate, an inflation-targeting regime, and tight fiscal policy, initially reinforced by a series of IMF programs. The currency depreciated sharply in 2001 and 2002, which contributed to a dramatic current account adjustment; from 2003 to 2006, Brazil ran record trade surpluses and recorded its first current account surpluses since 1992. Productivity gains - particularly in agriculture - also contributed to the surge in exports. While economic management has been good, there remain important economic vulnerabilities. The most significant are debt-related: the government's largely domestic debt increased steadily from 1994 to 2003 - straining government finances - before falling as a percentage of GDP beginning in 2003. Brazil improved its debt profile in 2006 by shifting its debt burden toward real denominated and domestically held instruments. LULA DA SILVA restated his commitment to fiscal responsibility by maintaining the country's primary surplus during the 2006 election. Following the inauguration of LULA DA SILVA's second term, he announced a package of further economic reforms to reduce taxes and increase public investment. Another challenge is maintaining economic growth over a period of time to generate employment and make the government debt burden more manageable.
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GDP (purchasing power parity):
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$1.616 trillion (2006 est.)
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GDP (official exchange rate):
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$943.6 billion (2006 est.)
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GDP - real growth rate:
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2.8% (2006 est.)
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GDP - per capita (PPP):
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$8,600 (2006 est.)
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GDP - composition by sector:
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agriculture: 8%
industry: 38%
services: 54% (2006 est.)
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Labor force:
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96.34 million (2006 est.)
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Labor force - by occupation:
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agriculture: 20%
industry: 14%
services: 66% (2003 est.)
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Unemployment rate:
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9.6% (2006 est.)
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Population below poverty line:
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31% (2005)
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Household income or consumption by percentage share:
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lowest 10%: 0.7%
highest 10%: 31.27% (2002)
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Distribution of family income - Gini index:
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56.7 (2005)
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Inflation rate (consumer prices):
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3% (2006 est.)
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Investment (gross fixed):
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20.2% of GDP (2006 est.)
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Budget:
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revenues: $244 billion
expenditures: $219.9 billion; including capital expenditures of $NA (FY07 est.)
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Public debt:
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50% of GDP (2006 est.)
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Agriculture - products:
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coffee, soybeans, wheat, rice, corn, sugarcane, cocoa, citrus; beef
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Industries:
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textiles, shoes, chemicals, cement, lumber, iron ore, tin, steel, aircraft, motor vehicles and parts, other machinery and equipment
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Industrial production growth rate:
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3.2% (2006 est.)
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Electricity - production:
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546 billion kWh (2005)
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Electricity - consumption:
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415.9 billion kWh (2005)
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Electricity - exports:
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7 million kWh (2004)
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Electricity - imports:
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39 billion kWh; note - supplied by Paraguay (2005)
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Oil - production:
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1.59 million bbl/day (2006 est.)
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Oil - consumption:
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2.1 million bbl/day (2006 est.)
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Oil - exports:
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278,400 bbl/day (2005)
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Oil - imports:
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379,400 bbl/day (2005)
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Oil - proved reserves:
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12.22 billion bbl (2006 est.)
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Natural gas - production:
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9.66 billion cu m (2004 est.)
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Natural gas - consumption:
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17.28 billion cu m (2004 est.)
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Natural gas - exports:
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0 cu m (2004 est.)
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Natural gas - imports:
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8.07 billion cu m (2006 est.)
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Natural gas - proved reserves:
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306 billion cu m (2005 est.)
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Current account balance:
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$13.5 billion (2006 est.)
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Exports:
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$137.5 billion f.o.b. (2006 est.)
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Exports - commodities:
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transport equipment, iron ore, soybeans, footwear, coffee, autos
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Exports - partners:
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US 19.2%, Argentina 8.4%, China 5.8%, Netherlands 4.5%, Germany 4.2% (2005)
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Imports:
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$91.4 billion f.o.b. (2006 est.)
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Imports - commodities:
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machinery, electrical and transport equipment, chemical products, oil, automotive parts, electronics
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Imports - partners:
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US 17.5%, Argentina 8.5%, Germany 8.4%, China 7.3%, Japan 4.6% (2005)
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Reserves of foreign exchange and gold:
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$87.27 billion (January 2007 est.)
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Debt - external:
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$176.5 billion (30 November 2006 est.)
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Economic aid - recipient:
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$30 billion (2002)
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Currency (code):
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real (BRL)
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Exchange rates:
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reals per US dollar - 2.1761 (2006), 2.4344 (2005), 2.9251 (2004), 3.0771 (2003), 2.9208 (2002)
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Fiscal year:
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calendar year
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Airports:
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4,276 (2006)
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Airports - with paved runways:
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total: 714
over 3,047 m: 8
2,438 to 3,047 m: 24
1,524 to 2,437 m: 164
914 to 1,523 m: 464
under 914 m: 54 (2006)
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Airports - with unpaved runways:
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total: 3,562
1,524 to 2,437 m: 81
914 to 1,523 m: 1,634
under 914 m: 1,847 (2006)
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Heliports:
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417 (2006)
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Pipelines:
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condensate/gas 244 km; gas 11,669 km; liquid petroleum gas 341 km; oil 5,212 km; refined products 4,755 km (2006)
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Railways:
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total: 29,252 km
broad gauge: 4,877 km 1.600-m gauge (939 km electrified)
standard gauge: 194 km 1.440-m gauge
narrow gauge: 23,785 km 1.000-m gauge (581 km electrified)
dual gauge: 396 km 1.000 m and 1.600-m gauges (three rails) (78 km electrified) (2005)
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Roadways:
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total: 1,751,868 km
paved: 96,353 km
unpaved: 1,655,515 km (2004)
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Waterways:
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50,000 km (most in areas remote from industry and population) (2005)
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Merchant marine:
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total: 137 ships (1000 GRT or over) 2,038,923 GRT/3,057,820 DWT
by type: bulk carrier 21, cargo 21, chemical tanker 8, container 8, liquefied gas 12, passenger/cargo 12, petroleum tanker 47, roll on/roll off 8
foreign-owned: 15 (Chile 1, Germany 7, Norway 2, Spain 4, UK 1)
registered in other countries: 5 (Ghana 1, Liberia 3, Marshall Islands 1) (2006)
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Ports and terminals:
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Gebig, Itaqui, Rio de Janeiro, Rio Grande, San Sebasttiao, Santos, Sepetiba Terminal, Tubarao, Vitoria
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Military branches:
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Brazilian Army, Brazilian Navy (Marinha do Brasil (MB), includes Naval Air and Marine Corps (Corpo de Fuzileiros Navais)), Brazilian Air Force (Forca Aerea Brasileira, FAB) (2007)
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Military service age and obligation:
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21-45 years of age for compulsory military service; conscript service obligation - nine to 12 months; 17-45 years of age for voluntary service; an increasing percentage of the ranks are "long-service" volunteer professionals; women were allowed to serve in the armed forces beginning in early 1980s when the Brazilian Army became the first army in South America to accept women into career ranks; women serve in Navy and Air Force only in Women's Reserve Corps (2001)
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Manpower available for military service:
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males age 19-49: 45,586,036
females age 19-49: 45,728,704 (2005 est.)
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Manpower fit for military service:
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males age 19-49: 33,119,098
females age 19-49: 38,079,722 (2005 est.)
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Manpower reaching military service age annually:
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males age 18-49: 1,785,930
females age 19-49: 1,731,648 (2005 est.)
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Military expenditures - percent of GDP:
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2.6% (2006 est.)
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Disputes - international:
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unruly region at convergence of Argentina-Brazil-Paraguay borders is locus of money laundering, smuggling, arms and illegal narcotics trafficking, and fundraising for extremist organizations; uncontested dispute with Uruguay over certain islands in the Quarai/Cuareim and Invernada boundary streams and the resulting tripoint with Argentina
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Trafficking in persons:
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current situation: Brazil is a source and destination country for women and girls trafficked for sexual exploitation within Brazil and to destinations in South America, the Caribbean, Western Europe, Japan, the US, and the Middle East, and for men trafficked within the country for forced agricultural labor; child sex tourism is a problem within the country, particularly in the resort areas and coastal cities of Brazil's northeast; foreign victims from Bolivia, Peru, China, and Korea are trafficked to Brazil for labor exploitation in factories
tier rating: Tier 2 Watch List - Brazil has failed to show evidence of increasing efforts to fight trafficking, specifically for its failure to apply effective criminal penalties against traffickers who exploit forced labor
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Illicit drugs:
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illicit producer of cannabis; trace amounts of coca cultivation in the Amazon region, used for domestic consumption; government has a large-scale eradication program to control cannabis; important transshipment country for Bolivian, Colombian, and Peruvian cocaine headed for Europe; also used by traffickers as a way station for narcotics air transshipments between Peru and Colombia; upsurge in drug-related violence and weapons smuggling; important market for Colombian, Bolivian, and Peruvian cocaine; illicit narcotics proceeds earned in Brazil are often laundered through the financial system; significant illicit financial activity in the Tri-Border Area
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This page was last updated on 15 March, 2007
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