BRIC Nations

BRAZIL
Immigration from Europe and the African slave trade, which were the prime sources of population growth during much of Brazil's history, became demographically insignificant by the 1930s. But during the 1950s, 1960s, and 1970s, some 20 million people moved from rural to urban areas in Brazil. This population movement constitutes one of the largest of its kind in history. Brazil's urban population grew at rates of about 5 percent per year . And during the 1980s, as a result of economic crisis and improved transportation services, emigration from Brazil increased to other countries, including the United States, Canada, Portugal, and Japan. For the first time ever, Brazil became a net exporter of population and thus entered a new stage in its demographic history. Some of the emigrants sought employment in menial jobs in developed countries; others were skilled personnel. However, a noteworthy reverse brain drain also took place . Brazils economy is the largest in South America and the country boasts well developed agriculture, mining, manufacturing, and service sectors. Since 2003, Brazil has improved its macroeconomic stability, built foreign reserves, reduced debt, kept inflatio n rates under control and committed to fiscal responsibilities. After witnessing unprecedented economic growth in 2007 and 2008, the global financial crisis finally hit Brazil. Brazils currency and stock market saw huge fluctuations as foreign investments dwindled, demand for commodity exports dried up and external credit increased. However, Brazil was one of the first emerging markets to stage a recovery, with GDP growth returning to positive levels. The Central Bank predicts growth of 5% in 2010. Nowadays, the economy of Brazil is the world's seventh largest by nominal GDP and eighth largest by purchasing power parity. Brazil has moderately free markets . Its trade partners number in the hundreds, with 60 percent of exports mostly of manufactured or semimanufactured goods. The culture of Brazil is a wonderful mish mash of religion, ethnicity, colorful heritages, exciting celebrations and much more. People all started thousands of years ago with the Native American Indians and just a few hundred years ago, the first Portugues e settlers. As a matter of fact, Portuguese is the official language of Brazil, even though many indigenous dialects are also spoken.

Brazilian religion represents a wide variety of faiths. However, a majority of the people in Brazil claim Catholicism the ir primary religious faith. Unlike other areas of the world, the Brazilian's cultural views lend itself to coexisting peacefully with a variety of religions. Family time in Brazil is almost sacred. You will find many families dining together. They also have their own time table for social gatherings and respect traditions from one generation to the next. Brazils culture is a friendly, open one that easily accommodates many ethnicities. The ethnic backgrounds of the people in Brazil also lend the country a colorful culture. Many Brazilian citizens have mixture of several bloodlines. Brazilians do not see the skin color however. They focus on the social classes. For the office life, it remains hierarchical. How comfortable employees are in communicating with their supervisors may depend on their education level4 as well as an employees level of security in his position. Their work hours are from 9:00 am to 6:00 pm and the overtime work necessitates overtime pay. Because of the diverse cultural background of its citizens, Brazil boasts many celebrations and festivals. Singing and dancing tend to dominate many of these events, especially the famous Carnival. Their love of food is not far behind however. The Brazilian people use a variety of seasonings in their cooking and have many regional signature dishes.

RUSSIA
Russia also known as Russian Federation is the largest country in the world located in the northern part of Eurasia with and area of 17,075,400 square kilometers. Russia has a population of 142,905,200 which is the world ninth most populous nation and the capital city is Moscow. Due to it large area, Russia has a wide range of environments and landforms. Its forest reserves is one of the world largest and its lakes contain approximately one quarter of the world's fresh water. Furthermore Russia has the world's largest reserves of mineral and energy resources. The people of Russia have a very developed educational system with a rate of nearly 100% literacy. Although 8.1 million students atte nded Russia's 1,108 institutions of higher education, however Russia still facing the problem of producing students with skills to adapt to a market economy because more emphasis is being placed on science and technology in education, Russian medical, mathematical, scientific, and space and aviation research.

Currently, Russia faces a demographic crisis as births lag far behind deaths. While its population is aging, the high number of deaths of working -age males due to cardiovascular disease is a major caus e of Russia's demographic woes. Russian culture has a rich history of long tradition of excellence in every aspect of the arts, especially when it comes to literature and philosophy, classical music and ballet, architecture and painting, which had greatly influence the world culture. Russia also has a rich material culture and a strong tradition in technology. Russia is currently part of the BRIC nations, which is country that has a newly advanced economic development, along with Brazil, china a nd India. The economy of Russia is the tenth largest economy in the world by nominal value and the sixth largest by purchasing power parity (PPP). It has a market economy with enormous natural resources, particularly oil and natural gas. In Russia there is a dramatic increase in domestic consumption and greater political stability which have bolstered economic growth in Russia. In 2008, the country ended up with an average annual growth of 7% for nine straight years. The main factor that has lead to the growth comes from non-traded services and goods for the domestic market. During that time the average income of Russian rises from $80 in 2000 to become $640 per month in early 2008. In the recent years there is a significant drop of Russian lining lived below the national poverty line, dropping from 40% in 1998 to approximately 13.7% in 2010. The Unemployment was at 6% in 2007, down from about 12.4% in 1999. The country main exports are oil, natural gas, metals, and timber account for more than 80% of the countrys export. However, the economic development of the country has been uneven with the Moscow region contributing a very large share of the country's GDP, which also result in an unequal infrastructure development throughout Russia. Russia is also a strong entrant toward the outsourcing of offshore software services, with strong human resources of well -educated low-cost workforce. This software service sector has already has grown to USD $200 million with a 50% annual growth rate. However the primary problem that the industry faces is the small size of Russian companies. This then causes the industry faces problem such as immature marketing, lack of management skills, lack of in English-speaking skills, and a shortage of qualified managers. Lastly, global corporation are afraid of its lack of protection on intellectual property, and a lack of overall business transparency due to its corrupted Russians government.

INDIA
India is one of BRIC nation because India has fast growing developing economies. Normally, Indian people are mostly Hinduism 80.5% follow by Muslim 13.4% then Christian2.3% and Sikh 1.9% and other 1.8%. The area of India composed both landscape and water scape. Total area is 3,287,263 sq km. The number of Indias population is the second largest. India's population is estimated at more than 1.1 billion and is growing at 1.55% a year. It has the world's 12th largest economy--and the third largest in Asia behind Japan and China--with total GDP in 2008 of around $1.21 trillion ($1,210 billion). Indias economy, Indias GDP is $912 billion its average annual real GDP from 1997-2007 was7.8%. The Goldman Sachs report projects that from 2007 to2020 Indias GDP per capita will quadruple and that Indias GDP will surpass and obliterate that of the USA by2050. Services, industry, and agriculture account for 54%, 29%, and 18% of GDP respectively. India is capitalizing on its large numbers of well -educated people skilled in the English language to become a major exporter of software services and software workers, but more than half of the population depends on agriculture for its livelihood. India b egan reform economics in 1991. Reforms include increasingly liberal foreign investment, industrial decontrol, reductions in tariffs and trade barriers, and adjustment in government monetary and fiscal policies, People in India did not have a very equally balanced environment between people. A rich man who was a priest (Arayan) for a scholar would be considered one of the highest people. So Caste System (Varna) happened. There are five levels: 1. Priest/Scholar 2.Raja/Nobleman 3.Merchant/farmer/land owner/craftsmen 4.Servant/worker/wage earners. If you were born in one Varna you lived and married in that Varna. Culture of India is very complex. For example, parents of women will give dowry to the future husband for repayment by marrying their daught er. Traditional clothing in India greatly varies across different parts of the country and is influenced immensely by local culture, geography and climate such as sari for women and dhoti or lungi for men. Also, the Vedas record everything about music and dance such as string instrument, drum and flute. Bollywood is the informal name given to the popular Mumbai-based film industry in India.

CHINA Area: 9.6million sq km. Capital: Beijing area Population: 1.37billion (in 2011)

1) Socio-economic The People's Republic of China is the worlds second largest economy after the United States. China is also the largest exporter and second largest importer of goods in the world. China became the world's top manufacturer in 2011. In 2010, Chinas GDP reached 5.88 trillion.

How has China coped with global economic crisis?

China is believed to be one country that has largely been able to protect itself from effects of US subprime crisis and credit crunch. But this nation is undergoing certain structural changes as far as its economy is concerned. Shanghai stock exchange has lost about two-thirds of its value. Chinese export industry is also experiencing difficulties in growth prospects. But despite these challenges, Chinese economy is believed to be independent and strong enough to not only cope with global economic crisis, but also establish itself as an global economic giant. Strengths China is one of world's largest receiver of foreign direct investments. World Bank estimates reveal that around $80 billion are invested in China annually. China's job market is also quite impressive, offering employment to about 15 million new workers on a yearly basis. Large-scale poverty eradication and fastest rise in income levels of individuals in China, have lent support to a view that this South-East Asian country, in near future, will surpass US in terms of economic power.

2) Cultural Factors Chinese clothing : It is not only externally elegant but it also symbolizes culture and communicates its own vitality. Clothing associated with colors was prevalent; red was the color for summer, green for spring, black for winters and white represented of autumns. Martial arts : China is one of the main birth places of Eastern martial arts. The names of martial arts were called Kung Fu or its first name Wushu. The first generation of art started more for the purpose of survival and warfare than art. Over time, some art forms have branched off, while others have retained a distinct Chinese flavor. Values : Most social values are derived from Confucianism and Taoism. The subject of which school was the most influential is always debated as many concepts such as Neo-Confucianism, Buddhism and many others have come about. Reincarnation is a reminder of the connection between real-life and the after-life. In Chinese business culture, the concept of guanxi, indicating the primacy of relations over rules, has been well documented. Architecture : Chinese structure is based on the principle of balance and symmetry. Office buildings, residences, temples, and palaces all follow the principle that the main structur e is the axis. The secondary structures are positioned as two wings on either side to form the main room and yard. The distribution of interior space reflects Chinese social and ethnical values. For example, a traditional residential building assigns famil y members based on the family's hierarchy.