Brazil is the world’s seventh-largest economy and the United States’ ninth-largest merchandise trading partner, with two-way trade totaling nearly $72 billion last year. The U.S. is Brazil’s second-largest export market and its leading foreign investor, with an accumulated foreign direct investment stock in 2012 of $79 billion. Brazil has begun an ambitious program to draw in private capital and managerial expertise to upgrade the nation’s infrastructure. With this in mind, Joel Reynoso, commercial officer, and Patrick Levy, commercial specialist in charge of the architectural, construction and engineering sectors with the U.S. Embassy’s Consulate General in Rio de Janeiro, discussed these opportunities in a question-and-answer format.
Q: In Brazil, what are some trends, economic or otherwise, that U.S. companies should be aware of?