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Brazilian exports : climbing down a competitiveness cliff

Author

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  • Canuto, Otaviano
  • Cavallari, Matheus
  • Reis, Jose Guilherme

Abstract

This note examines in detail Brazil’s export performance over the past 15 years, focusing not only on growth and composition, but also on different performance dimensions, including diversification, sophistication, and firm dynamics. The analysis uses international comparisons to better situate the Brazilian performance, and explores different databases, including firm-level data recently published by the World Bank. The note uses a recent diagnostic toolkit developed by the World Bank in order to suggest some hypotheses about the factors that have been inhibiting exports and industrial production expansion. Among the latter, it is noted how service sectors, as the largest beneficiaries from favorable terms of trade, accommodated larger wage increases and"exported"cost pressures to other sectors of the economy. Furthermore, although a stronger currency can be appointed as one of the elements behind the lower competitiveness in Brazilian exports, sluggish productivity performance and a real wage uptrend explain a significant part of the overall loss of competitiveness. This diagnostic reinforces the importance of resuming the agenda of microeconomic reforms, increasing the investment-to-gross domestic product ratio, and advancing toward better-skilled human capital.

Suggested Citation

  • Canuto, Otaviano & Cavallari, Matheus & Reis, Jose Guilherme, 2013. "Brazilian exports : climbing down a competitiveness cliff," Policy Research Working Paper Series 6302, The World Bank.
    • Handle: RePEc:wbk:wbrwps:6302
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    Cited by:

    1. Vargas Da Cruz,Marcio Jose, 2014. "Do export promotion agencies promote new exporters ?," Policy Research Working Paper Series 7004, The World Bank.
    2. Tortorella, Guilherme Luz & Miorando, Rogério & Marodin, Giuliano, 2017. "Lean supply chain management: Empirical research on practices, contexts and performance," International Journal of Production Economics, Elsevier, vol. 193(C), pages 98-112.
    3. Porzecanski, Arturo C., 2014. "Brazil’s Place in the Global Economy," MPRA Paper 54257, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    4. International Monetary Fund, 2017. "Brazil: Selected Issues," IMF Staff Country Reports 2017/216, International Monetary Fund.
    5. Alicia Garcia-Herrero & Enestor Dos Santos & Pablo Urbiola & Marcos Dal Bianco & Fernando Soto & Mauricio Hernandez & Rosario Sanchez & Arnulfo Rodriguez, 2014. "Competitiveness in the Latin American manufacturing sector: trends and determinants," Working Papers 1411, BBVA Bank, Economic Research Department.
    6. Nelson Marconi & Igor L. Rocha & Guilherme R. Magacho, 2016. "Sectoral capabilities and productive structure: An input-output analysis of the key sectors of the Brazilian economy," Brazilian Journal of Political Economy, Center of Political Economy, vol. 36(3), pages 470-492.
    7. Canuto, Otaviano & Cavallari, Matheus & Reis, José Guilherme, 2013. "The Brazilian Competitiveness Cliff," World Bank - Economic Premise, The World Bank, issue 105, pages 1-8, February.
    8. Guilherme R. Magacho & John Mccombie, 2016. "Impacts Of Developing Countries Growth On Natural Resource Exporters: A Bop Constrained Growth Model," Anais do XLIII Encontro Nacional de Economia [Proceedings of the 43rd Brazilian Economics Meeting] 097, ANPEC - Associação Nacional dos Centros de Pós-Graduação em Economia [Brazilian Association of Graduate Programs in Economics].

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