São Paulo – The reasons for the capital flight from Brazil and what must be done in order for the country to begin drawing in foreign investments anew will be discussed during the “Forum on Investment in Brazil and Brazilian Investment Abroad,” held by the Brazilian Society for the Study of Transnational Companies and Economic Globalization (Sobeet) and by Interesse Nacional magazine. The event will take place next Tuesday (27th) in São Paulo. The Brazilian minister of Finance, Joaquim Levy, is slated to deliver the closing address at the forum.
According to Sobeet CEO Luís Afonso Lima, the forum will review the Brazilian economic scenario. “The moment calls for this discussion and for solutions to be presented,” the executive told ANBA this Thursday (22nd).
Lima said Brazil had been performing well as a target of foreign direct investment (FDI) up until last year. However, the picture has changed, and this year the outlook is not good. According to Lima, 2015 FDI inflow estimates released early this year by the United Nations conference on Trade and Development (Unctad) indicated 23.8% growth in FDI among wealthy countries, and 3.3% growth in emerging ones. An 11.4% increase in global FDI flows is expected to take place this year.
Brazil has been countering this trend. Lima said foreign investment in Brazil this year is lower than it had been in the past. Last year, USD 62 billion worth of FDI entered Brazil. In 2013, USD 64 billion made its way into the country.
“Brazil is sliding down the ranking of FDI targets. We were once the sixth leading target, but we should lose several positions this year. Unctad had said developed countries would become more attractive targets than emerging ones, after having remained the primary targets for several years. Still, Brazil is even lagging behind other emerging countries,” Lima claimed.
One of the reasons that impacts Brazil’s performance as a recipient of investments is the recession. To be again the target of foreign investments, Brazil needs to solve its political crisis, resume economic growth and make efforts to sign international agreements, along the lines of the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP). TPP removes trade tariffs between the United States, Japan, Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Peru, Singapore and Vietnam.
Expecting to attend the fórum are the business director of the Brazilian Trade and Investment Promotion Agency (Apex-Brasil), André Favero, the chief economist of Bradesco, Octavio de Barros, the Brazil’s former ambassador in Washington, Rubens Barbosa, and other representatives from Apex-Brasil and the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD).
Service
Forum on Investment in Brazil and Brazilian Investment Abroad
October 27th, 2015, starting at 8:30 AM
Hotel Renaissance, Alameda Santos, 2.233, São Paulo-SP
Information: + 55 11 4701-6407 or atendimento@cultcorp.com.br
*Translated by Gabriel Pomerancblum and Sérgio Kakitani
