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Communications

Airports [time series]

3,774 total, 3,106 usable; 386 with permanent-surface runways; 2 with runways over 3,659 m; 21 with runways 2,240-3,659 m; 503 with runways 1,220-2,439 m

Civil air [time series]

176 major transport aircraft

Roadways (Highways) [time series]

1,448,000 km total; 48,000 km paved, 1,400,000 km gravel or earth

Waterways (Inland waterways) [time series]

50,000 km navigable

Merchant marine [time series]

271 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 5,855,708 GRT/9,909,097 DWT; includes 2 passenger-cargo, 68 cargo, 1 refrigerated cargo, 12 container, 9 roll-on/roll-off, 56 petroleum, oils, and lubricants (POL) tanker, 15 chemical tanker, 10 liquefied gas, 14 combination ore/oil, 82 bulk, 2 combination bulk

Pipelines [time series]

crude oil, 2,000 km; refined products, 3,804 km; natural gas, 1,095 km

Ports [time series]

Belem, Fortaleza, Ilheus, Manaus, Paranagua, Porto Alegre, Recife, Rio de Janeiro, Rio Grande, Salvador, Santos

Railways (Railroads) [time series]

29,694 km total; 25,268 km 1.000-meter gauge, 4,339 km 1.600-meter gauge, 74 km mixed 1.600-1.000-meter gauge, 13 km 0.760-meter gauge; 2,308 km electrified

Telecommunication systems (Telecommunications) [time series]

good system; extensive radio relay facilities; 9.86 million telephones; stations--1,223 AM, no FM, 112 TV, 151 shortwave; 3 coaxial submarine cables 3 Atlantic Ocean INTELSAT earth stations with total of 3 antennas; 64 domestic satellite stations

Defense Forces

Military and security forces (Branches) [time series]

Brazilian Army, Navy of Brazil, Brazilian Air Force

Military expenditures (Defense expenditures) [time series]

0.6% of GDP, or $2.3 billion (1989 est.)

Military manpower [time series]

males 15-49, 39,620,936; 26,752,307 fit for military service; 1,617,378 reach military age (18) annually

Economy

Agricultural products (Agriculture) [time series]

accounts for 12% of GDP; world's largest producer and exporter of coffee and orange juice concentrate and second-largest exporter of soybeans; other products--rice, corn, sugarcane, cocoa, beef; self-sufficient in food, except for wheat

Aid [time series]

US commitments, including Ex-Im (FY70-88), $2.5 billion; Western (non-US) countries, ODA and OOF bilateral commitments (1970-87), $9.5 billion; OPEC bilateral aid (1979-89), $284 million; Communist countries (1970-88), $1.3 billion

Budget [time series]

revenues $27.8 billion; expenditures $40.1 billion, including capital expenditures of $8.8 billion (1986)

Exchange rates (Currency) [time series]

novo cruzado (plural--novos cruzados); 1 novo cruzado (NCr$) = 100 centavos

Electricity [time series]

52,865,000 kW capacity; 202,280 million kWh produced, 1,340 kWh per capita (1989)

Exchange rates [time series]

novos cruzados (NCr$) per US$1--2.83392 (1989), 0.26238 (1988), 0.03923 (1987), 0.01366 (1986), 0.00620 (1985); note-- 25 tourist/parallel rate (December 1989)

Exports [time series]

$34.2 billion (1989 est.); commodities--coffee, metallurgical products, chemical products, foodstuffs, iron ore, automobiles and parts; partners--US 28%, EC 26%, Latin America 11%, Japan 6% (1987)

Debt - external (External debt) [time series]

$109 billion (December 1989)

Fiscal year [time series]

calendar year

Real GDP (purchasing power parity) (GDP) [time series]

$377 billion, per capita $2,500; real growth rate 3% (1989 est.)

Illicit drugs [time series]

illicit producer of cannabis and coca, mostly for domestic consumption; government has an active eradication program to control cannabis and coca cultivation

Imports [time series]

$18.0 billion (1989 est.); commodities--crude oil, capital goods, chemical products, foodstuffs, coal; partners--Middle East and Africa 24%, EC 22%, US 21%, Latin America 12%, Japan 6% (1987)

Industrial production growth rate (Industrial production) [time series]

growth rate 3.2% (1989 est.)

Industries [time series]

textiles and other consumer goods, shoes, chemicals, cement, lumber, iron ore, steel, motor vehicles and auto parts, metalworking, capital goods, tin

Inflation rate (consumer prices) [time series]

1,765% (1989)

Economic overview (Overview) [time series]

The economy, a mixture of private enterprises of all sizes and extensive government intervention, experienced enormous difficulties in the late 1980s, notably declining real growth, runaway inflation, foreign debt obligations of more than $100 billion, and uncertain economic policy. Government intervention includes trade and investment restrictions, wage/price controls, interest and exchange rate controls, and extensive tariff barriers. Ownership of major industrial facilities is divided among private interests, the government, and multinational companies. Ownership in agriculture likewise is varied, with the government intervening in the politically sensitive issues involving large landowners and the masses of poor peasants. In consultation with the IMF, the Brazilian Government has initiated several programs over the last few years to ameliorate the stagnation and foreign debt problems. None of these has given more than temporary relief. The strategy of the new Collor government is to increase the pace of privatization, encourage foreign trade and investment, and establish a more realistic exchange rate. One long-run strength is the existence of vast natural resources.

Unemployment rate [time series]

2.5% (December 1989)

Geography

Climate [time series]

mostly tropical, but temperate in south

Coastline [time series]

7,491 km

Area - comparative (Comparative area) [time series]

slightly smaller than the US

Continental shelf [time series]

200 meters or to depth of exploitation;

Disputes - international (Disputes) [time series]

short section of the boundary with Paraguay (just west of Guaira Falls on the Rio Parana) is in dispute; two short sections of boundary with Uruguay are in dispute (Arroyo de la Invernada area of the Rio Quarai and the islands at the confluence of the Rio Quarai and the Uruguay); claims a Zone of Interest in Antarctica

Environment - current issues (Environment) [time series]

recurrent droughts in northeast; floods and frost in south; deforestation in Amazon basin; air and water pollution in Rio de Janeiro and Sao Paulo

Exclusive fishing zone [time series]

200 nm;

Land boundaries [time series]

14,691 km total; Argentina 1,224 km, Bolivia 3,400 km, Colombia 1,643 km, French Guiana 673 km, Guyana 1,119 km, Paraguay 1,290 km, Peru 1,560 km, Suriname 597 km, Uruguay 985 km, Venezuela 2,200 km

Land use [time series]

7% arable land; 1% permanent crops; 19% meadows and pastures; 67% forest and woodland; 6% other; includes NEGL% irrigated

Natural resources [time series]

iron ore, manganese, bauxite, nickel, uranium, phosphates, tin, hydropower, gold, platinum, crude oil, timber

Note [time series]

largest country in South America; shares common boundaries with every South American country except Chile and Ecuador

Terrain [time series]

mostly flat to rolling lowlands in north; some plains, hills, mountains, and narrow coastal belt

Maritime claims (Territorial sea) [time series]

200 nm

Area (Total area) [time series]

8,511,965 km2; land area: 8,456,510 km2; includes Arquipelago de Fernando de Noronha, Atol das Rocas, Ilha da Trindade, Ilhas Martin Vaz, and Penedos de Sao Pedro e Sao Paulo

Government

Administrative divisions [time series]

24 states (estados, singular--estado), 2 territories* (territorios, singular--territorio), 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; note--the territories of Amapa and Roraima will become states on 15 March 1991

Capital [time series]

Brasilia

Political parties (Communists) [time series]

about 30,000

Constitution [time series]

5 October 1988

Diplomatic representation in the US (Diplomatic representation) [time series]

Ambassador Marcilio Marques MOREIRA; Chancery at 3006 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington DC 20008; telephone (202) 745-2700; there are Brazilian Consulates General in Atlanta, Chicago, Los Angeles, Miami, New Orleans, and New York, and Consulates in Dallas, Houston, and San Francisco; US--Ambassador Richard MELTON; Embassy at Avenida das Nocoes, Lote 3, Brasilia, Distrito Federal (mailing address is APO Miami 34030); telephone [55] (6) 321-7272; there are US Consulates General in Rio de Janeiro and Sao Paulo, and Consulates in Porto Alegre and Recife

Executive branch [time series]

president, vice president, Cabinet

Flag [time series]

green with a large yellow diamond in the center bearing a blue celestial globe with 23 white five-pointed stars (one for each state) 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)

Independence [time series]

7 September 1822 (from Portugal)

Judicial branch [time series]

Supreme Federal Tribunal Chief of State and Head of Government--President Fernando Affonso COLLOR de Mello (since 15 March 1990); Vice President Itamar FRANCO (since 15 March 1990)

Legal system [time series]

based on Latin codes; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

Legislative branch [time series]

bicameral National Congress (Congresso Nacional) consists of an upper chamber or Senate (Senado) and a lower chamber or Chamber of Deputies (Camara dos Deputados)

Country name (Long-form name) [time series]

Federative Republic of Brazil

International organization participation (Member of) [time series]

CCC, FAO, G-77, GATT, Group of Eight, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAC, ICAO, ICO, IDA, IDB--Inter-American Development Bank, IFAD, IFC, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, INTELSAT, IPU, IRC, ISO, ITU, IWC--International Wheat Council, OAS, PAHO, SELA, UN, UNESCO, UPU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO

National holiday [time series]

Independence Day, 7 September (1822)

Political parties (Other political or pressure groups) [time series]

left wing of the Catholic Church and labor unions allied to leftist Worker's Party are critical of government's social and economic policies

Political parties (Political parties and leaders) [time series]

National Reconstruction Party (PRN), Daniel Tourinho, president; Brazilian Democratic Movement Party (PMDB), Ulysses Guimaraes, president; Liberal Front Party (PFL), Hugo Napoleao, president; Workers' Party (PT), Luis Ignacio (Lula) da Silva, president; Brazilian Labor Party (PTB), Luiz Gonzaga de Paiva Muniz, president; Democratic Labor Party (PDT), Doutel de Andrade, president; Democratic Social Party (PDS), Jarbas Passarinho, president; Brazilian Social Democracy Party (PSDB), Mario Covas, president; Brazilian Communist Party (PCB), Salomao Malina, secretary general; Communist Party of Brazil (PCdoB), Joao Amazonas, president

Suffrage [time series]

voluntary at age 16; compulsory between ages 18 and 70; voluntary at age 70 President--last held 15 November 1989, with runoff on 17 December 1989 (next to be held November 1994); results--Fernando Collor de Mello 53%, Luis Inacio da Silva 47%; first free, direct presidential election since 1960; Senate--last held 15 November 1986 (next to be held 3 October 1990); results--PMDB 60%, PFL 21%, PDS 8%, PDT 3%, others 8%; seats--(66 total) PMDB 43, PFL 15, PDS 6, PDT 2, others 6; note--as of 1990 Senate has 75 seats; Chamber of Deputies--last held 15 November 1986 (next to be held 3 October 1990); results--PMDB 53%, PFL 23%, PDS 7%, PDT 5%, other 12%; seats--(495 total) PMDB 258, PFL 114, PDS 33, PDT 24, others 58; note--as of 1990 Chamber of Deputies has 570 seats

Government type (Type) [time series]

federal republic

People

Birth rate [time series]

26 births/1,000 population (1990)

Death rate [time series]

7 deaths/1,000 population (1990)

Ethnic groups (Ethnic divisions) [time series]

Portuguese, Italian, German, Japanese, black, Amerindian; 55% white, 38% mixed, 6% black, 1% other

Infant mortality rate [time series]

69 deaths/1,000 live births (1990)

Labor force [time series]

57,000,000 (1989 est.); 42% services, 31% agriculture, 27% industry

Languages (Language) [time series]

Portuguese (official), Spanish, English, French

Life expectancy at birth [time series]

62 years male, 68 years female (1990)

Literacy [time series]

76%

Nationality [time series]

noun--Brazilian(s); adjective--Brazilian

Net migration rate [time series]

0 migrants/1,000 population (1990)

Organized labor [time series]

13,000,000 dues paying members (1989 est.)

Population [time series]

152,505,077 (July 1990), growth rate 1.9% (1990)

Religions (Religion) [time series]

90% Roman Catholic (nominal)

Total fertility rate [time series]

3.1 children born/woman (1990)