Free Trade and Transportation Infrastructure in Brazil
Free Trade and Transportation Infrastructure in Brazil

Author: Paulo Resende

Publisher:

Published: 2014

Total Pages: 27

ISBN-13:

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In the development of models analyzing the impacts of free trade agreements between countries or regions within countries, relatively little attention has been paid to potential limitations imposed by transportation infrastructure. In free trade blocks such as those represented by the European Union or the USA and Canada part of NAFTA, the implicit assumption of little or no impact imposed by transportation infrastructure may be justified. However, in the case of MERCOSUL in South America, this assumption may need to be challenged. In this paper, an illustration of a potential approach to this problem will be illustrated with reference to Brazil. Attention will be devoted to the way in which the potential gains from free trade within MERCOSUL were mapped onto a highway transportation network to identify the creation of additional bottlenecks and point out the need of highway improvements once the impacts of economic development result in higher transportation costs due to such bottlenecks.

Filling the Gap
Filling the Gap

Author: Ms.Mercedes Garcia-Escribano

Publisher: International Monetary Fund

Published: 2015-07-29

Total Pages: 20

ISBN-13: 1513509535

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Infrastructure bottlenecks have been identified as a key obstacle to growth affecting productivity and market efficiency, and hindering domestic integration and export performance. This paper assesses the state of Brazil’s infrastructure, in light of past investment trends and various quality and quantity indicators. Brazil’s infrastructure stock and its quality rank low in relation to that of comparator countries, chosen amongst main export competitors. We provide evidence that infrastructure affects domestic integration by analyzing price convergence of tradable goods across major cities. The government’s concession program will narrow part of the infrastructure gap, however, governance reforms will be crucial to improving investment efficiency.

Transport Infrastructure and Regional Development in Brazil
Transport Infrastructure and Regional Development in Brazil

Author: Maria da Piedade Araújo

Publisher:

Published: 2014

Total Pages: 23

ISBN-13:

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This paper analyses the impacts of the implementation of a transportation infrastructure project over the regional and national economic growth and its contribution to the decrease of the regional disparities in Brazil, as far as accessibility is concerned. This paper takes, as an illustrative case, the impact of the partial duplication of the highway BR-116, which is the main route between the Northeast region and the Center-South of the country. The methodological framework consists in the integration of a transportation model with the MIBRA model, an interregional applied equilibrium model of the Brazilian economy. The transportation model measures the change in the interregional distance and the accessibility to transport investment, while the MIBRA model estimates the spatial economic effects of the projects on the variables described above. The benchmark year is 1999. The model was constructed for six Brazilian regions, North, Northeast, Southeast, Center-West, South and São Paulo, and has details for twenty nine industries. In the simulation, the BR-116 highway has being duplicated by a total of 1,724 km. Overall the results show an increase in Brazilian GDP. In the short run, the change of the main economics indicators (GDP, demand of families and employment) is positive to almost all of the regions, with the Northeast region, the poorest one, being the more beneficiated, considering the GDP change. However, in the long run, in spite of positive changes in the GDP, the negative change in the employment level in the Northeast region persists. Despite the employment result, it is possible to verify that the duplication of BR-116 is capable of generate a propitious trade flow to the poorest regions of the country and to contribute to an increase in the production level, mainly in the Northeast region. As far as accessibility is concerned, it is possible not only to have access to cheaper inputs, but also to expand the production of more competitive products either to the domestic or to the external market.

Landlocked Countries in South America
Landlocked Countries in South America

Author: United Nations

Publisher: United Nations Publications

Published: 2009

Total Pages: 82

ISBN-13: 9789211216943

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This report analyses the current state of the landlocked developing countries (LLDCs) Bolivia and Paraguay. It analyses the traditional topics: infrastructure at national level and connectivity towards adjacent countries; the recent development in international laws and treaties; and cross-border operation. The report also evaluates the level of international transport costs and the potential impact on trade. It further presents the currently induced over costs in logistic chains, which pose an additional burden to the competitiveness of the countries.

Latin American Trade Agreements
Latin American Trade Agreements

Author: Thomas Andrew O'Keefe

Publisher: Latin American Trade Agreement

Published: 1997

Total Pages: 1208

ISBN-13:

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For the first time, all the most important Latin American economic integration programs are explored in the same volume in English: the Latin American Integration System (ALADI); MERCOSUR; the Andean Community; the G-3 Accord between Colombia, Venezuela, and Mexico; and the Central American Integration System (SICA). Latin American Trade Agreements explains how all of these sub-regional programs operate and where the opportunities are for foreign direct investors and exporters. It provides concrete examples of companies using the integration projects as part of their strategic business planning for Latin America. It also discusses the many opportunities available in transportation infrastructure develop-ment and intra-Latin American logistics. The Appendices include English translations of the trade agreements and important rules and regulations. Latin American Trade Agreements not only focuses on the rules for trade in goods and services, but also examines how the sub-regional projects and each member state treat subjects as diverse as environmental protection, intellectual property rights, foreign direct investment, as well as labor and tax laws. This looseleaf is an asset to lawyers, trade specialists, and international strategic planners.