As its economy has grown to be the eighth largest in the world, Brazil has consolidated its power in South America, extended its influence to the broader region, and become increasingly prominent on the world stage. The Obama Administration’s national security strategy regards Brazil as an emerging center of influence, whose leadership it welcomes “to pursue progress on bilateral, hemispheric, and global issues.” In recent years, U.S.-Brazil relations have generally been positive despite Brazil’s prioritization of strengthening relations with neighboring countries and expanding ties with nontraditional partners in the “developing South.” Although some disagreements have emerged over the past two years—such as different policy approaches toward the situations in Honduras and Iran—Brazil and the United States continue to engage on a number of issues, including counternarcotics, counterterrorism, energy security, trade, human rights, and the environment.
Dilma Rousseff of the ruling center-left Workers’ Party (Partido dos Trabalhadores, PT) was inaugurated to a four-year presidential term on January 1, 2011. She is Brazil’s first female president. Rousseff inherits a country that has benefited from what many analysts consider 16 years of stable and capable governance under Presidents Cardoso (1995-2002) and Lula (2003- 2010). She has pledged continuity, maintaining generally orthodox economic policies while continuing to assert a role for the state in development. Her 10-party electoral coalition holds significant majorities in both houses of Brazil’s legislature. Although this legislative strength should enable Rousseff to pursue her agenda, keeping the unwieldy coalition together will likely prove challenging. Additional challenges for the Rousseff Administration include strengthening public security, improving the quality of government services, and addressing the country’s overburdened infrastructure.
With a gross national income (GNI) of $1.6 trillion, Brazil is the largest economy in Latin America. Over the past eight years, the country has enjoyed average annual growth of over 4%. This growth has been driven by a boom in international demand for its commodity exports and the increased purchasing power of Brazil’s fast-growing middle class, which has added 30 million people over the past eight years and now accounts for a majority of the population. In 2010, the value of Brazil’s exports reached some $202 billion, contributing to a trade surplus of $20.3 billion. The country’s current economic strength is the result of a series of policy reforms implemented over the course of two decades that reduced inflation, established stability, and fostered growth. These policies have also enabled Brazil to better absorb international shocks like the recent global financial crisis, from which Brazil emerged relatively unscathed. Although current conditions and Brazil’s recent performance suggest the country will sustain solid economic growth rates in the near term, several constraints on mid- and long-term growth remain.
Previous Congresses have demonstrated considerable interest in U.S.-Brazil relations, particularly energy and trade issues. Several pieces of legislation were introduced during the 111th Congress, including a bill (S. 587) that would have provided $6 million to expand U.S.-Brazil biofuels cooperation, and a bill (H.R. 5439) that would have offset U.S. contributions to a fund for Brazilian cotton farmers—created as a result of a World Trade Organization dispute—by reducing subsidy payments for U.S. cotton farmers. These issues, as well as other topics in U.S.-Brazil relations, are likely to remain on the agenda of the 112th Congress. This report analyzes Brazil’s political, economic, and social conditions, and how those conditions affect its role in the world and its relationship with the United States.
Dilma Rousseff of the ruling center-left Workers’ Party (Partido dos Trabalhadores, PT) was inaugurated to a four-year presidential term on January 1, 2011. She is Brazil’s first female president. Rousseff inherits a country that has benefited from what many analysts consider 16 years of stable and capable governance under Presidents Cardoso (1995-2002) and Lula (2003- 2010). She has pledged continuity, maintaining generally orthodox economic policies while continuing to assert a role for the state in development. Her 10-party electoral coalition holds significant majorities in both houses of Brazil’s legislature. Although this legislative strength should enable Rousseff to pursue her agenda, keeping the unwieldy coalition together will likely prove challenging. Additional challenges for the Rousseff Administration include strengthening public security, improving the quality of government services, and addressing the country’s overburdened infrastructure.
With a gross national income (GNI) of $1.6 trillion, Brazil is the largest economy in Latin America. Over the past eight years, the country has enjoyed average annual growth of over 4%. This growth has been driven by a boom in international demand for its commodity exports and the increased purchasing power of Brazil’s fast-growing middle class, which has added 30 million people over the past eight years and now accounts for a majority of the population. In 2010, the value of Brazil’s exports reached some $202 billion, contributing to a trade surplus of $20.3 billion. The country’s current economic strength is the result of a series of policy reforms implemented over the course of two decades that reduced inflation, established stability, and fostered growth. These policies have also enabled Brazil to better absorb international shocks like the recent global financial crisis, from which Brazil emerged relatively unscathed. Although current conditions and Brazil’s recent performance suggest the country will sustain solid economic growth rates in the near term, several constraints on mid- and long-term growth remain.
Previous Congresses have demonstrated considerable interest in U.S.-Brazil relations, particularly energy and trade issues. Several pieces of legislation were introduced during the 111th Congress, including a bill (S. 587) that would have provided $6 million to expand U.S.-Brazil biofuels cooperation, and a bill (H.R. 5439) that would have offset U.S. contributions to a fund for Brazilian cotton farmers—created as a result of a World Trade Organization dispute—by reducing subsidy payments for U.S. cotton farmers. These issues, as well as other topics in U.S.-Brazil relations, are likely to remain on the agenda of the 112th Congress. This report analyzes Brazil’s political, economic, and social conditions, and how those conditions affect its role in the world and its relationship with the United States.
