Rio de Janeiro – Brazilian exports of defense products and services reached USD 1.31 billion in the first half of 2025. This figure represents 73.6% of the record set in 2024, when the sector posted exports at USD 1.78 billion, the best result in the past 11 years.
Currently, Brazil’s defense industry sells its products in about 140 countries across all continents, with 34% of exports consisting of aircraft, their parts, and components. The defense sector accounts for 3.58% of the Latin American giant’s gross domestic product and generates 2.9 million jobs in the country.
According to Heraldo Luiz Rodrigues, Secretary of Defense Products at the Ministry of Defense, the result reflects an increasingly competitive sector, as well as the constant pursuit of autonomy and commercial opportunities both inside and outside the country.
“We play a fundamental role in supporting the export of defense products, which includes the necessary technological development to ensure that the products are state-of-the-art, financing and insurance, as well as commercial assistance and promotion of the products from our Defense Industrial Base.”
Technology
Next year, Brazil expects to achieve 55% mastery of technologies such as radars, satellites, and rockets—items used in strategic projects of the country’s three Armed Forces. Currently, this rate stands at 42%. By 2033, the expectation is that this level will reach 75%, enabling national autonomy in developing research projects of interest to defense.
Self-sufficiency in defense-related technologies could boost exports. “Brazilian companies have a very large installed capacity and products with worldwide recognition for their high quality. This makes foreign sales likely to grow,” said Secretary Rodrigues.
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Translated by Guilherme Miranda
