Diplomatic representation from the US: chief of mission: Ambassador-designate J. Brian ATWOOD embassy: Avenida das Nacoes, Quadra 801, Lote 3, Brasilia, Distrito Federal Cep 70403–900 Brazil mailing address: Unit 3500, APO AA 34030 consulate(s) general: Rio de Janeiro, Sao Paulo consulate(s): Recife
Flag description: 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)
Economy
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. Prior to the institution of a stabilization plan—the Plano Real (Real Plan) in mid-1994, stratospheric inflation rates had disrupted economic activity and discouraged foreign investment. Since then, tight monetary policy has brought inflation under control—consumer prices increased by 2% in 1998 compared to more than 1,000% in 1994. At the same time, GDP growth slowed from 5.7% in 1994 to about 3.0% in 1997 due to tighter credit. The Real Plan faced its strongest challenge in 1998, as the world financial crisis caused investors to more closely examine the country's structural weaknesses. The most severe spillover for Brazil—after Russia's debt default in August 1998—created unrelenting pressure on the currency which forced the country to hike annual interest rates to 50%. Approximately $30 billion in capital left the country in August and September. 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. Capital continued to leach out of the country, and investors, concerned about the rising mountain of debt and currency widely-viewed as overvalued, stayed on the sidelines. In January 1999, Brazil made an abrupt shift of course in exchange rate policy, abandoning the strong currency anti-inflation anchor of the Real Plan. On 13 January 1999, Central Bank officials announced a one-time 8% devaluation of the real, and on 15 January 1999, the currency was declared to be freely floating. President CARDOSO remains committed to limiting inflation and weathering the financial crisis through austerity and sacrifice as the country rides out a deep recession. He hopes the country will resume economic growth in the second half of 1999, so that he can once again focus on his longer-term goal of reducing poverty and income inequality. CARDOSO still hopes to address mandated revenue sharing with the states and cumbersome procedures to amend the constitution before the end of his second term.
GDP: purchasing power parity—$1.0352 trillion (1998 est.)
GDP—real growth rate: 0.5% (1998)
GDP—per capita: purchasing power parity?$6,100 (1998 est.)
GDP—composition by sector: agriculture: 14% industry: 36% services: 50% (1997)
Population below poverty line: 17.4% (1990 est.)
Household income or consumption by percentage share: lowest 10%: 0.8% highest 10%: 47.9% (1995)
Inflation rate (consumer prices): 2% (1998)
Labor force: 57 million (1989 est.)
Labor force—by occupation: services 42%, agriculture 31%, industry 27%
Unemployment rate: 8.5% (1998 est.)
Budget:
revenues: $151 billion
expenditures: $149 billion, including capital expenditures of $36
billion (1998)
Industries: textiles, shoes, chemicals, cement, lumber, iron ore, tin, steel, aircraft, motor vehicles and parts, other machinery and equipment
Industrial production growth rate: 4.5% (1997 est.)
Electricity—production: 291.63 billion kWh (1997)
Electricity—production by source: fossil fuel: 4.38% hydro: 92.09% nuclear: 0.8% other: 2.73% (1996)
Electricity—consumption: 323.215 billion kWh (1996)
Electricity—exports: 8 million kWh (1996)
Electricity—imports: 37.5 billion kWh (1996)
note: imported electricity from Paraguay
Agriculture—products: coffee, soybeans, wheat, rice, corn,
sugarcane, cocoa, citrus; beef
Exports: $51 billion (f.o.b., 1998)
Exports—commodities: iron ore, soybean bran, orange juice,
footwear, coffee, motor vehicle parts
Exports—partners: EU 28%, Latin America (excluding Argentina)
23%, US 20%, Argentina 12% (1996)
Imports: $57.6 billion (f.o.b., 1998)
Imports—commodities: crude oil, capital goods, chemical products, foodstuffs, coal
Imports—partners: EU 26%, US 22%, Argentina 13%, Japan 5% (1996)
Debt—external: $258.1 billion (December 1998)
Economic aid—recipient: $1.012 billion (1995)
Currency: 1 real (R$) = 100 centavos
Exchange rates: reals (R$) per US$1—1.501 (January 1999), 1.161 (1998), 1.078 (1997), 1.005 (1996), 0.918 (1995), 0.639 (1994); CR$ per US$1—390.845 (January 1994) note: the real (R$) was introduced on 1 July 1994, equal to 2,750 cruzeiro reais; 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$
Fiscal year: calendar year
Communications
Telephones: 14,426,673 (1992 est.)
Telephone system: good working system domestic: extensive microwave radio relay system and a domestic satellite system with 64 earth stations international: 3 coaxial submarine cables; satellite earth stations—3 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean), 1 Inmarsat (Atlantic Ocean Region East)
Radio broadcast stations: AM 1,627, FM 251, shortwave 114 (of which 91 are associated with AM stations) (1998)
Radios: 60 million (1993 est.)
Television broadcast stations: 138 (1997)
Televisions: 30 million (1993 est.)
Transportation
Railways:
total: 28,862 km (1,187 km electrified)
broad gauge: 4,123 km 1.600-m gauge
narrow gauge: 24,390 km 1.000-m gauge; 13 km 0.760-m gauge
dual gauge: 336 km 1.000-m and 1.600-m gauges (three rails)
Highways: total: 1.98 million km paved: 184,140 km unpaved: 1,795,860 km (1996 est.)
Waterways: 50,000 km navigable
Pipelines: crude oil 2,980 km; petroleum products 4,762 km;
natural gas 4,246 km (1998)
Ports and harbors: Belem, Fortaleza, Ilheus, Imbituba, Manaus,
Paranagua, Porto Alegre, Recife, Rio de Janeiro, Rio Grande,
Salvador, Santos, Vitoria
Merchant marine:
total: 179 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 4,132,037
GRT/6,642,442 DWT
ships by type: bulk 35, cargo 28, chemical tanker 6, combination
ore/oil 10, container 10, liquefied gas tanker 10, multifunction
large-load carrier 1, oil tanker 61, passenger-cargo 5,