As the Brazilian economy became more open to the rest of the world and more market oriented, annual economic growth rose from about 2.4 per cent in the early 2000s to 7.5 per cent by the end of the decade.
Brazil’s exports of goods and services, as a share of GDP, increased from 6.6 per cent in 1996 to 11.2 per cent in 2010.2 The most remarkable measure of success is that this step-up in growth was achieved with a declining rate of inequality – proof positive that economic growth isn’t inevitably shadowed by a widening gap between rich and poor.