Population, GDP, natural resources, leaders and history of Brazil: the Magna Factbook country file, with its Magna grade (MBA, ranked #21 of 195).
Brazil — in Eastern South America, bordering the Atlantic Ocean. Political status: federal presidential republic. The country's capital is Brasília; it covers 8,515,770 sq km. Independence: 7 September 1822 (from Portugal). Terrain: mostly flat to rolling lowlands in north; some plains, hills, mountains, and narrow coastal belt. Climate: mostly tropical, but temperate in south. Population: 221.4 million (2025 estimate). Population growth: +0.58% per year. Median age: 35.4 years. Life expectancy: 76.3 years (2024 est.). Languages: Portuguese (official and most widely spoken language); less common languages include Spanish (border areas and schools), German, Italian, Japanese, English, and ma…
| Capital | Brasília |
|---|---|
| Population | 221,359,387 (2025 est.) |
| GDP (PPP) | $4.165 trillion (2024 est.) |
| GDP per capita (PPP) | $19,600 (2024 est.) |
| Real GDP growth | 3.4% (2024 est.) |
| Inflation | 4.4% |
| Unemployment | 7.7% |
| Public debt | 83% of GDP (2023 est.) |
| Exports | $388.333 billion (2024 est.) |
| Imports | $377.05 billion (2024 est.) |
| Life expectancy | 76.3 years (2024 est.) |
| Median age | 35.4 |
| Urbanization | 87.8% of total population (2023) |
| Government | federal presidential republic |
| Independence | 7 September 1822 (from Portugal) |
| Languages | Portuguese (official and most widely spoken language); less common languages include Spanish (border areas and schools), German, Italian, Japanese, English, and many minor Amerindian languages |
MBA · 67/100 — The Magna grade is our 0–100 composite of structural national power — five dimensions, 100+ indicators. It is the Bureau's own assessment, not a mirror of World Bank or CIA figures.
Momentum +4 — Quarterly momentum: the Bureau's read on the country's trajectory over the last quarter, from −10 (deteriorating fast) to +10 (accelerating).
Lula carried Brazil's Global South voice to the New Delhi BRICS summit, cementing the country's role as the bloc's Latin American anchor.
A quiet-but-solid quarter: no domestic shocks, steady external positioning. Momentum mildly positive on the back of summit diplomacy.
Bauxite, Gold, Iron ore, Manganese, Nickel, Niobium, Phosphates, Platinum, Tantalum, Tin, Rare earths, Uranium, Oil, Hydropower, Timber.
Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva — President. President Luiz Inácio LULA da Silva (since 1 January 2023)
Brazil maintains 135 embassies and 58 consulates abroad, hosts 130 foreign diplomatic missions, holds permanent missions to UN New York, OAS Washington. The breadth of a diplomatic network is a direct measure of diplomatic power — it shows how far a country’s influence, alliances and interests reach.
| Embassies abroad | 135 |
|---|---|
| Consulates abroad | 58 |
| Foreign missions hosted | 130 |
| Multilateral missions | UN New York, OAS Washington |
Source: Lowy Institute Global Diplomacy Index 2024 via Wikipedia 'List of countries by number of diplomatic missions' https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_number_of_diplomatic_missions ; hosted: Consular Affairs Center Jan 2026 report (in-country ranking) https://zenodo.org/records/18109976
Transport networks are economic power made physical — ports, runways, railways and pipelines decide what a country can move, sell and defend.
| Sea access | Coastal — 7491 km of coastline. |
|---|---|
| Airports (total) | 5297 + 1871 heliports (registration prefix PP) |
| Major seaports | Belem, DTSE/Gegua Oil Terminal, Itajai, Port de Salvador, Porto Alegre, Recife, Rio de Janeiro, Rio Grande, Santos, Tubarao, Vitoria |
| Railways | 29849.9 km |
| Pipelines | 5,959 km refined petroleum product (1,165 km distribution, 4,794 km transport), 11,696 km natural gas (2,274 km distribution, 9,422 km transport), 1,985 km crude oil (distribution), 77 km ethanol/petrochemical (37 km distribution, 40 km transport) (2016) |
| Top container ports (TEU) | Santos (4,442,876 TEU, 2021); Itajai (1,610,092 TEU, 2021); Paranagua (1,044,157 TEU, 2021) |
Atlas Brasil Cantanhede International Airport (BVB) — Boa Vista; Cataratas International Airport (IGU) — Foz do Iguaçu; Congonhas–Deputado Freitas Nobre Airport (CGH) — São Paulo; Curitiba-Afonso Pena International Airport (CWB) — Curitiba; Deputado Luiz Eduardo Magalhães International Airport (SSA) — Salvador; Eduardo Gomes International Airport (MAO) — Manaus; Eurico de Aguiar Salles International Airport (VIX) — Vitória; Governador Jorge Teixeira de Oliveira International Airport (PVH) — Porto Velho; Hercílio Luz International Airport (FLN) — Florianópolis; Marechal Cunha Machado International Airport (SLZ) — São Luís.
Showing 10 of 15 major airports.
| LNG import terminals | Pecem, Rio de Janiero |
|---|---|
| Oil terminals | DTSE/Gegua oil terminal, Ilha Grande (Gebig), Guaiba Island terminal, Guamare oil terminal |
| River ports | Manaus (Amazon) |
Sources: OurAirports public-domain extract (2026-10-02); per-entry Wikipedia links included; CIA World Factbook via cia_factbook snapshot (2026-09-28); theodora.com CIA mirror (CIA World Factbook Transportation section), scraped 2026-10-02
| Political system | federal presidential republic |
|---|---|
| Last election | 2022 — presidential; 2022-10-30; winner: Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva (Workers' Party); runoff 50.9% vs Bolsonaro; 2026 general election scheduled 2026-10-04 Wikipedia |
| Next election | 2026 — presidential (scheduled) |
Source: constitutional schedule / public election calendar
MBA · 67 Ranked #21 of 195 countries in the Magna Country Rankings. Full ranking breakdown for Brazil.
