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BRAZIL PROFILE |
Brazil is South America's most influential country, an economic giant and one of the world's biggest democracies.
People
Population: 196 million.
Annual growth rate: 1.28%.
Ethnic groups: Portuguese, Italian, German, Spanish, Japanese, Arab, African, and indigenous people.
Religion: Roman Catholic (74%).
Language: Portuguese.
Cities: Capital--Brasilia (pop. 2.5 million). Other cities--Sao Paulo (10.9 million), Rio de Janeiro (6.1 million), Belo Horizonte (2.4 million), Salvador (2.9 million), Fortaleza (2.4 million), Recife (1.5 million), Porto Alegre (1.4 million), Curitiba (1.8 million).
With its estimated 196 million inhabitants, Brazil has the largest population in Latin America and ranks fifth in the world. The majority of people live in the south-central area, which includes the industrial cities of Sao Paulo, Rio de Janeiro, and Belo Horizonte. Urban growth has been rapid; by 2005, 81% of the total population was living in urban areas. This growth has aided economic development but also has created serious social, security, environmental, and political problems for major cities.
Six major groups make up the Brazilian population: the Portuguese, who colonized Brazil in the 16th century; Africans brought to Brazil as slaves; various other European, Middle Eastern, and Asian immigrant groups who have settled in Brazil since the mid-19th century; and indigenous people of Tupi and Guarani language stock. Intermarriage between the Portuguese and indigenous people or slaves was common. Although the major European ethnic stock of Brazil was originally Portuguese, subsequent waves of immigration have contributed to a diverse ethnic and cultural heritage.
Economy:
GDP (official exchange rate): USD 1.314 trillion.
GDP (purchasing power parity): USD 1.849 trillion.
Annual real growth (2008 est.): 5.4%.
Per capita GDP (purchasing power parity): USD 9,500
Brazil has Latin America's largest economy; there has been steady growth under Lula but still millions live in poverty.
President Lula and his economic team have implemented prudent fiscal and monetary policies and have pursued necessary microeconomic reforms. Brazil's economy, aided by a benign international environment, grew approximately 2.8% in 2006 and 4.5% in 2007. Brazil is now a net creditor nation, and sustained growth, coupled with booming exports, healthy external accounts, moderate inflation, decreasing unemployment, and reductions in the debt-to-GDP ratio led two major rating agencies to give Brazil an investment-grade sovereign debt rating in early 2008.
Brazil has one of the most advanced industrial sectors in Latin America. Accounting for one-third of GDP, Brazil's diverse industries range from automobiles and parts, other machinery and equipment, steel, textiles, shoes, cement, lumber, iron ore, tin, and petrochemicals, to computers, aircraft, and consumer durables. Most major automobile producers have established production facilities in Brazil. Brazil has a diverse and sophisticated services industry as well. Mail and telecommunications are the largest, followed by banking, energy, commerce, and computing.
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