Brazil: Selected Trade Issues

The objective of this paper is to introduce an initial broad set of Brazilian trade and trade related issues for discussion within the OECD enhanced engagement context. Accordingly, the paper takes an historical perspective as an aid to understanding some current trade policy settings in Brazil. Brazil has faced a number of challenges over the last 60 years in its search for a high sustainable rate of economic growth and a dramatic improvement in its distribution of income. The Brazilian import substitution program after World War II stimulated periods of high but unsustainable growth, OECD (2006). From 1988, the Government began a process of general economic reform that included major trade policy liberalisation from around 1990. Successive governments have continued this policy stance in spite of the fact that a number of external and internal economic shocks have delayed reform dividends in the form of high sustained economic growth. In short, Brazil has not had the spectacular economic growth record over the last decade that has been seen in China and India ? in spite of its policy reforms. In this sense the Brazilian economy can be said to be in transition. However, policy continuity over the last fifteen years has had very good results in establishing macroeconomic and balance of payments stability coupled with strong employment growth and an improving distribution of income.