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According to the World Management Survey, Brazil has a higher percentage (18%) of poorly-managed companies than Mexico (11%), and much higher than China (6%) or the US (2%). The fact that these companies remain in business points to insufficient competition; otherwise, they would need to raise productivity or go out of business altogether.

Brazil’s is an unusually closed economy as measured by trade penetration, with exports plus imports equal to just 27.6 per cent of GDP in 2013. Brazil’s large size is often used to explain its relative lack of openness. But this argument does not stand up to scrutiny: among the six countries with larger economies than Brazil’s, the ...

Water is also essential for agriculture, another important sector of the country’s economy. According to the National Water Agency (ANA), irrigation consumes 72% of Brazil’s water supply. This dependency means that when there is a water shortage – as evidenced by the experience in San Paulo in 2014 and 2015 – the productivity of ...

“Brazil is going through a delicate moment, still under the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic in several sectors. But over the years, it has made incredible achievements in poverty reduction, inequality, fiscal stability and environmental sustainability. We cannot lose focus on persistent challenges either,” said Zutt.

Brazil’s spending on infrastructure barely covers depreciation and rigid budget rules (which the government aims to reform) mean that the bulk of spending cuts so far has fallen on discretionary capital spending. But even in the current tight fiscal environment, government entities sit on funds allocated for investment that cannot be disbursed.

Since the 1980s, investment in Brazil’s infrastructure has declined from 5% to a little above 2% of the country’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP), scarcely enough to cover depreciation and far below that of most middle-income countries ( see figure below ). The result is a substantial infrastructure gap.

A new World Bank study reveals that if this inequality is fully eliminated from the job market, not only women – but also the national economy – will be able to feel the benefits. The report Gender Equality and Economic Growth in Brazil, considers a hypothetical set of anti-discrimination laws aimed at promoting equal pay between men and women.

Brazil was chosen to host the WorldSkills Competition, a biennial contest highlighting the best professional skills from around the globe. Competitors from over 50 countries gathered in Sao Paolo last month to demonstrate individual and collective technical skills in specific professional areas.

In the state of Amazonas in northwestern Brazil, overfishing and sport fishing threaten the fisheries sector. Many commercial fleets, for example, take advantage of loosening environment laws and weak capacity for monitoring—which grew even worse as local governments operated under a further reduced capacity during the COVID-19 pandemic.

As with energy, the Brazilian transportation sector is mentioned in the report as a low-carbon-intensity sector in comparison to other countries, due to the widespread use of ethanol. Nevertheless, the fossil fuels used in transportation accounted for 12 percent of all CO2 emissions in 2008. Public transportation policies in cities and ...