India - Brazil : Strengthening Ties

Being one of the most important trading partners of India in the Latin America and Caribbean region, Brazil has been offering its best to us for a long time. Here’s to acknowledge that and know about India’s payback to it.

Commercial ties between Brazil and India have always been strong. The countries share a close relationship at a bilateral level, which has seen a surge in the last two decades.

The economic recession in Brazil in 2015 did, however, affect Brazil’s overall trade, impacting to some extent the India-Brazil bilateral trade as well. Proving that resilience is what takes to weather it all, the country has emerged stronger than ever and is all set to beef up its relation with its trading partners. The country, today, ranks among the top 10 economies of the world and is the largest in Latin America (LA), with a GDP of US$ 2 trillion in 2017.

Why Brazil Beckons

Brazil continues to be among the top 10 recipients of FDI in the world and the only Latin American country on that list. Inward FDI flows in Brazil totalled over US$ 1.1 trillion from 2008 to 2017, averaging US$ 110 billion per year, according to the data from Brazilian bank.

With advantages including robust domestic investor protection rules enforced by an independent, credible judiciary and a fair regulatory environment that provide security for investors, Brazil has become a hot bed for profitable opportunities.

The country attracts for a number of other reasons too. With 208 million population and a steady domestic demand for services, goods and agricultural products, it makes for the largest consumer markets in the world. Additionally, it has an economy which relies on a wide range of industrial sectors including LA’s largest Aerospace, Automotive, Oil and Gas, Mining, Capital goods, Medical Equipment, Chemical and Technology. Its large pool of workers and extensive natural resources are advantages that few countries can boast of.

India Connection

Indian companies including ONGC, Videocon, TCS, Wipro, Infosys, Cadilla, Mahindra, L&T, Renuka Sugars, United Phosphorus, Polaris have invested in Brazil in sectors such as IT, Pharmaceutical, Energy, Agri-business, Mining, Engineering, and Auto.

While Brazilian companies including Marco Polo (Automobiles), Vale (biggest mining company), Stefanini (IT), Gerdau (Steel) etc. have invested in Automobile, IT, Mining, Energy, Biofuels, Footwear sectors in India.

Shedding light on the machine tools trade between the two nations, João Carlos Marchesan, President, Brazilian Association of Machinery and Equipment Industry (ABIMAQ), said, “We have a favorable machine tool trade with India. Despite strong oscillations in the past years that impacted our exports and imports, our balance, for the most years has been positive, which indicates that India is a strong market for our products.”

“In 2017, despite a 27.2 percent reduction in machine tools exports and a spike in imports by 77.2 percent, the balance stays favorable for Brazil at US$ 500,000,” he added.

Speaking on the machining technologies from India that could be of interest to the Brazilian market, Marchesan stressed on the Industry 4.0 technologies. “There is a good scope of collaboration there,” he noted pointing to the high demand of smart technologies in Brazil.

Showcasing Brazil’s Manufacturing Process

An initiative of ABIMAQ as well as key industry organizations, Brazil International Machine Tool and Industrial Automation Exhibition, EXPOMAFE, is scheduled to be held on May 07 – 11, 2019 at São Paulo Expo.

The expo will be attended by over 55,000 industry professionals and will host over 750 Brazilian and international exhibitor brands.

Brazil ranks among the top 10 economies of the world and is the largest in Latin America, with a GDP of US$ 2 trillion in 2017.

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