...Introduction Racial disparity and discrimination is not a new concept to any nation. In fact, many were built on the back of slave labor, whether the slaves were indigenous peoples or imported bodies. While many nations have undertaken measures to overcome racial disparity, others have encouraged racial democracy. Brazil, a modern and industrialized nation, suffers from racial discrimination based on their position in the world economy and built on the ideology of the past. History Brazil’s history is rife with racism and slavery, dating back to its discovery by Pedro Alveres Cabral in 1500. Brazil was originally settled with the intention of harvesting Brazilwood. However, over time the profits from that were supplanted by sugar, which soon became the major export (Phillips 117). Over a short period of time, Brazil became the leading producer of sugar in the Atlantic world. The production of all these exports meant cheap labor was needed. During this time, the Portuguese were sending between 4,000 and 5,000 slaves per year to Brazil from Angola and West Africa; by the 18th century, one million slaves had been imported (117). The continually shifting landscape meant that Brazil’s exports continued to shift. By the time the 19th century came around, Brazil’s major export was coffee as sugar production had shifted to the Caribbean Islands. The continued influx of European slaves and citizens resulted in an uneven population. European labor was generally more skilled...
Words: 2882 - Pages: 12
...Brazil is a country that has seen income inequality drop of the last decade, unemployment is at near record lows, and there has been substantial middle class growth. By most estimates, 40 million people have been pulled out of poverty in the last decade and extreme poverty had been reduced by 89 percent. Nocera, Joe; "Does Brazil Have the Answer," The New York Times, 20 Jan, 2014. Brazil is the largest of the Latin American countries and covers nearly half (47.3%) of the continent of South America. It occupies an area of 3,386, 470 square miles and is the fifth largest country in the world after Russia, Canada, China, and the United States. According to the Central Intelligence Agencies World Fact Book, Brazil's economy is characterized by a large and well-developed agriculture, mining, manufacturing , and service sector. Once a third world country, Brazil has experienced rapid growth and boasts a rapidly expanding middle class. Since 2003, Brazil has steadily improved its macroeconomic stability, building up foreign reserves, and reducing its debt profile by shifting its debt burden toward real denominated and domestically held instruments. In 2008, Brazil became a net external creditor and two ratings agencies awarded investment grade status to its debt. After strong growth in 2007 and 2008, the onset of the global financial crisis hit Brazil in 2008. Brazil experienced two quarters of recession, as global demand for Brazil's commodity-based exports dwindled...
Words: 559 - Pages: 3
...|[pic] |Brazil Country Profile |[pic] | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | ...
Words: 896 - Pages: 4
...BRIC: Currency Depreciation in Russia and Brazil ◎D0131160 Irina Chen ◎D0131187 Gloria Chang ◎D0173297 Sunny Chiu ◎D0173270 Doris Chen ◎D0173670 Athena Du Contents Abstract ..................................................................................... 2 Brazil ......................................................................................... 3 Why Brazil become the BRIC ................................................... 3 What was behind Brazil’s Depreciation? ................................. 8 Russia ...................................................................................... 13 Why Russia become the BRIC?.............................................. 13 What was behind the Ruble depreciation? ........................... 19 Comparison and Similarities between Russia and Brazil ....... 24 In the Future ........................................................................... 25 The Future of Brazil ............................................................... 25 The future of Russia .............................................................. 25 Conclusion ............................................................................... 26 Contributor ............................................................................. 27 Reference ................................................................................ 27 1 Abstract The BRIC is the acronym of four nations, including Brazil, Russia, India and China. The conception of...
Words: 5973 - Pages: 24
...A STUDY ON PROGRESSIVE INCOME TAX A CASE STUDY OF US & BRAZIL ________________________________________ INSTRUCTOR: DALIA EL-EDEL ECON 310-02 TERM PAPER - BY: JIHAD MASHAMOUN 900-08-2910 LARA AZZAM 900-09-3033 LUJANE MULLA 900-10-1019 ABSTRACT There is no doubt that the widening income disparities were a major driving force fueling the recent uprisings within the Middle East. One solution that has been put forth for adoption is the progressive income tax. This paper intends to assess the theoretical bases and popular arguments surrounding this very dynamic topic. The first section provides a brief definition of progressive taxation in contrast with other forms of taxation. It also discusses the most dominant for and against arguments both from a theoretical and an empirical point of view. The second section provides a case study of progressive income taxes in a leading industrial and developed country; the US. The third section provides a comparative study from Brazil; an emerging economy that has recently adopted progressive taxation. Based on the theoretical analysis and the two case studies, the paper concludes by providing policy recommendations that should be implemented in order to complement progressive taxation and gain the best and most balanced results in terms of equality, efficiency and revenues. Finally taxation is only part of the economic equation; proper efficient tax system is only one step forward towards creating equal opportunities through proper...
Words: 4032 - Pages: 17
...market. | Relative Importance | With reference to Essential Business Requirement of COSTCO, we evaluated the significance of the four factors: * Culture *** | * Administrative **** | * Geographic **** | * Economic ** | {key: (****-Most significant) - (*- Least Significant)} | Business Challenges | * Culture * Nigeria has local informal retail shopping market. Significant difference in culture (high context). * Variety of people from different cultures, challenge to please each one. * Administrative * It has an inefficient property registration system. * Government has restrictive trade policies. * Geographic * Inadequate infrastructure. Difficult to reach out to rural customers. * Economic * Regional disparity affects target customers. * Presence of a rival (Shoprite) with a developed distribution network. | Business Opportunities | * Culture * Cultural Similarity with other African countries. If successful in Nigeria, company can expand further in Africa’s untapped market. * Live in large families so its beneficial for Costco wholesale model. * Administrative * Government is investing heavily on improving the infrastructure....
Words: 3027 - Pages: 13
...------------------------------------------------- ------------------------------------------------- ------------------------------------------------- ------------------------------------------------- Proposal for Greenfield Venture Expansion in Brazil ------------------------------------------------- ------------------------------------------------- Peace of Mind Consulting, LLC ------------------------------------------------- “Where safety is our #1 concern” ------------------------------------------------- ------------------------------------------------- ------------------------------------------------- Ulrich Bernard ------------------------------------------------- Financial Analyst ------------------------------------------------- ------------------------------------------------- Kevin Cotter ------------------------------------------------- Operational Analyst ------------------------------------------------- ------------------------------------------------- Jingming Li ------------------------------------------------- Foreign Relations Liaison ------------------------------------------------- ------------------------------------------------- Vincentius Njauw ------------------------------------------------- Economic Analyst ------------------------------------------------- ------------------------------------------------- April 24, 2012 ------------------------------------------------- ------------------------------------------------- ...
Words: 4805 - Pages: 20
...defined by David Harvey as the: … theory of political economic practices that proposes that human well-being can be best advanced by liberating individual entrepreneurial freedoms and skills within an institutional framework characterised by strong private property rights, free markets and free trade... (2007, pg 2) Through this approach, economic and social barriers and constraints are sought to be eliminated to prompt the market towards becoming self-sufficient. Therefore, it is very easy for neoliberalism to hinder the development of economies and society, as imbalances in wealth and living conditions are emphasised and expanded over time. In particular, these imbalances become quite prominent in developing countries, for example, Brazil, where they may begin to take importance over the conditions of the population. Despite this, we are still observing the existence of neoliberalism in the 21st century on an international scale as the globalisation era lingers and development continues to evolve. In the modern world, neoliberalism offers ‘the supporting ideology of globalisation’ and depends on market forces, free trade and laissez-faire government roles to become efficient. (Heron, T. 2008. Pg. 1;Kelleher, A and Klein, L. 2011. Pg. 95) It was in the late eighteenth century when Adam Smith originally formulated the idea that in an economy, priority must be given to privitsation and it is necessary for trade and finance to be fully liberalized in order to achieve high...
Words: 2413 - Pages: 10
...generation to the next while lifestyle choices and tradition are picked up along the way. These choices have a great impact on the ability to live a healthy life. While there are many ethnic groups residing in the United States today, Hispanics have this highest number of residents with a sixty percent increase from 1990 to 2000. The United States is expected to populate up to 97 million Hispanics by the year 2050 which will account for approximately one-quarter of the U.S. population. (Escarce, 2002) The words Hispanic and Latino have a tendency to be used interchangeably here in the United States with regard to Spanish-speaking countries such as Mexico, Brazil and Costa Rica. The remainder of this paper will elaborate on the health promotion of the diverse population of Hispanics in the United States as well as the disparities and barriers associated with the health of these residents. Current Health Status of the Hispanic Population The health status of the Hispanic population, according to several government studies, is quite favorable in relation to other U.S. ethnic groups when looking at life expectancy and mortality rates. ("Hispanic Populations," 2014) In 2010, the life expectancy of a Hispanic female was 83.3 years old and a male, 78.5 years old. Compared to the white, non-Hispanic female of 76.4 years old and white male of 81.1 years old. There are approximately 3.2 million Hispanics living in the U.S with diabetes making diabetes the number one diagnosed...
Words: 1123 - Pages: 5
...second largest economy in the world after the United States. China’s economy has been the envy of many nations and it will continue to grow and serve as a key player in industrial production. This research paper will discuss China’s current economy by looking at its advantages and disadvantages during its development. According to IndexMundi.com, a website that offers an economic overview of china’s economy as of 2012, in 2010 is when China became the world’s largest exporter. China is rapidly becoming a dominant world power. Its economy grew fascinatingly fast and they now have the second largest economy in the world. Even though this growth is very remarkable, China still faces a lot of issues. A major issue is that of the urban rural disparity gap. With a population of 1.3 billion, China is still considered a developing country. “China’s gross national income per capita of $4,940 ranked 114th in the world; and over 170 million people still live below the $1.25-a-day international poverty line”(The World Bank). The year 2005 proved to be another great year for China’s economy. According to the Chinese bureau of Statistics, Chinas Gross national product in 2005 increased 9.9% from its 2004 level to reach 18232.1 billion RMB. This marks the fourth straight year where GDP growth rate surpassed eight percent. However, hidden underneath the surface of China’s...
Words: 950 - Pages: 4
...Comparative Location Analysis Belem, Brazil and Maracaibo, Venezuela located in South America are both examined in regards to the potential of sustaining a successful lumber industry. Although particular locations are portrayed as more favourable within the lumber industry, this industry has skills, technologies, and methods of operation that are adaptable to different temperatures, soil, humidity, labour skills, and economic conditions. Furthermore, after careful research that looks into the different aspects of the two cities location determinists, entry modes, exporting, globalization, transportation, and foreign direct investment. According to World Guides (2015), the exporting route on the Atlantic Ocean from the Amazon River to the harbour in Belem is an important piece in Brazil’s importing and exporting system. Therefore, due to the frequency of the imports and exports coming through the waters of Belem, this city must maintain a good level of infrastructure standard for roads to get the exports to and from the loading dock and to their desired destination in order to maintain a quality service that will keep exports up. The Para and Belem History (2013), states that Belem started expanding on the development of roads to help accommodate and direct the busy flow of people and the vehicles containing various goods that were coming to and from the river port. Road building promoted the use of the Belem/ Amazon River route for importing and exporting goods. Also...
Words: 1886 - Pages: 8
...REPORT – BRAZIL Distribution of income Brazil has historically a very unequal income distribution. In the 90´s Brazilian government believed that if high inflation rate were cut down, the income distribution would improve. In fact, after a successful plan of stabilization of the inflation, the unequal pattern of income distribution did improve in a consistent way in this decade. Other important aspect about income inequality in Brazil is related to regional pattern of income distribution, which is extremely unequal between different regions of the country. Although a generally improved distribution of income took place, the differences between regions remained in the 90’s. However, the current level of unequal income distribution is yet very far from the pattern of many developed countries. [1] Growth and structural changes have not altered significantly Brazil's extremely unequal distribution of wealth, income, and opportunity. Despite impressive increments in economic growth and output, the number of poor has risen sharply. Most of the poor are concentrated in the rural areas or in the country's large cities or metropolitan areas. Poverty, measured by the local minimum wage, declined from over 52% of the population, in the beginning of the nineties, to about 38% in 2005, meeting the Millennium Development Goal. Extreme poverty, defined as income of less than a dollar a day (in purchasing power parity), declined from 8.8% to 4.2% in the same period. [2] Trade In...
Words: 2183 - Pages: 9
...When we look at oil prices in terms of inflation, we realize that this is one of the strongest components why the economy is collapsing and now we are on tipping end of a dangerous bout of deflation. The problem of deflation is that it renders any and all debts dangerous and a country as indebted as the United States of America, simply cannot risk that outcome of it. The economy is affected by many factors that determine if it is strong enough or simply too weak. These factors have to do with buyers consuming goods and services and how often they do this. Do the goods and services that are consumed by people create wealth, jobs, and a better overall economy for a country? In this paper I will discuss how the oil practices affect the economy and to what extent. Throughout history we have seen evidence of some economies that have evolved faster and stronger than others. Policies that the government places on industry, technology and the environment can all affect the prosperity of an economy. Of the factors that affect economic growth the industry of oil and gas is one that holds a dominant spot in the world's and America's economy today. When evaluating the economic growth factor of economy and specifically oil and gas one must consider some factors such as: the relationship that it have with the whole economy, the way it affect economic growth, what it a cause or effect of economic growth, along with a few others. In respect to how economy is affected by oil and...
Words: 1653 - Pages: 7
...Although Latin America has faced many social, political, and economic issues within the last three centuries, inequality remains one of the most important, historical, and omnipresent aspects of the region’s culture. As Europeans took over Latin America during the time of colonization, they implemented many elitist social structures that have held strong and are evident today (Harris). Income inequality is the most visible and greatest disparity that the region faces; yet inequality between gender, ethnicities, and education remain strong and significant problems with a necessity for improvement. Inequality of wealth and disparity of power and influence are Latin American’s greatest curses and are at the root of many of the developmental, social, criminal, and political problems that continue to plague the region (De Ferranti). Since inequality has pervaded into every feature of Latin American society, it is important to measure inequality accurately in order to obstruct the causes of the discrimination and prevent new ones from beginning. The Gini Coefficient is an effective way that people indicate the inequality of a country by measuring a frequency distribution of income or wealth. Using the "Gini Index" of inequality in the distribution of income and consumption, the researchers found that Latin America and the Caribbean, from the 1970s through the 1990s, measured nearly 10 points more unequal than Asia, 17.5 points more unequal than the 30 countries in the Organization...
Words: 3191 - Pages: 13
...Environment Charlene Bittick Colorado Technical University Online Emerging Markets EMBA650-1201B-01 Phase 1 – Individual Project Professor: Emmanuel Chebe February 24, 2013 Abstract The following report is in reference to the country of Chile and their business environment. It is necessary to include the target market for Chile as it refers to the economy, people and the government. The following topics will be included in the report: total population, population growth rates, ethnic and religious makeup, per capita GDP, income disparity, unemployment rate, educational levels and literacy rates, key industries, economic output, inflation and national debt. This information will be gathered and then compared to possible differences Chile has with the United States market. This report will include to charts that will depict the differences in the data requested from the manager (Task List, 2013). Chile’s Business Environment Most consider Brazil as Latin America’s favorite, but Chile is the country that possesses the best business environment; which is according to the Latin Business Index (2011). This index measures eighteen countries business climates within Latin America. This index’s data is focused on five categories with sub-components. The components and categories are: * Macro environment: Percent GDP growth and percent inflation from 2009 – 2011 and a forecast for 2012 * Globalization and Competitiveness: Globalization Competitiveness Tariffs ...
Words: 1177 - Pages: 5
