Head of state: Queen Elizabeth II, represented by a governor-general Prime minister: Baldwin Spencer
Population
199,321,413
89,018
Life Expectancy
72.790 years
75.690 years
Capital City
Brasilia
Saint John's
Largest city
Sao Paulo (population: 10,021,300)
Saint John's (population: 24,226)
Human Development Index
0.807
0.83
GDP per capita
$11,900 US
$18,200 US
Literacy Rate
88.6%
85.8%
Corruption Perception Index
3.5
NA
Percentage of Women in Parliament
9.4%
16.7%
Wealthiest Citizens
Eike Batista ($7.5bn US)
NA
Unemployment Rate
6.000%
11.000%
Death Penalty
Abolished except for special circumstances
Legal
Political System
federal republic
constitutional monarchy with a parliamentary system of government
Independence date
7 September 1822 (from Portugal)
1 November 1981 (from UK)
Religions
Roman Catholic (nominal) 73.6%, Protestant 15.4%, Spiritualist 1.3%, Bantu/voodoo 0.3%, other 1.8%, unspecified 0.2%, none 7.4% (2000 census)
Anglican 25.7%, Seventh Day Adventist 12.3%, Pentecostal 10.6%, Moravian 10.5%, Roman Catholic 10.4%, Methodist 7.9%, Baptist 4.9%, Church of God 4.5%, other Christian 5.4%, other 2%, none or unspecified 5.8% (2001 census)
Languages
Portuguese (official and most widely spoken language); note - less common languages include Spanish (border areas and schools), German, Italian, Japanese, English, and a large number of minor Amerindian languages
English (official), local dialects
Exports
transport equipment, iron ore, soybeans, footwear, coffee, autos
petroleum products, bedding, handicrafts, electronic components, transport equipment, food and live animals
External Debt
$397,500,000,000 $
$359,800,000 US
Exchange Rate
reals (BRL) per US dollar - 1.8644 (2008 est.), 1.85 (2007 est.), 2.1761 (2006), 2.4344 (2005), 2.9251 (2004)
East Caribbean dollars (XCD) per US dollar - 2.7 (2007), 2.7 (2006), 2.7 (2005), 2.7 (2004), 2.7 (2003) note: fixed rate since 1976
Military Budget as percentage of GDP
1.700%
0.500%
Beijing Olympics Medal Count
15
0
Location
Eastern South America, bordering the Atlantic Ocean
Caribbean, islands between the Caribbean Sea and the North Atlantic Ocean, east-southeast of Puerto Rico
Area
8,514,877 km sq
443 km sq
Coastline
7,491 km
153 km
Climate
mostly tropical, but temperate in south
tropical maritime; little seasonal temperature variation
