São Paulo

• GDP (2018): 714,7 billion €
• GDP per capita (2018): 58.691,90 R$ (8.820 €)
• Upward inflation rate: 5,2 %
• Leading industry sector, from heavy to high-tech, banking and finance, commerce and global trade
• Capital of the State of São Paulo, which GDP is larger than that of most countries

• The city of São Paulo is served by three major airports: Congonhas within the city, Guarulhos 25 km to the east, and Viracopos 100 km northwest, connecting the city both domestically and internationally. The international airport Guarulhos is the busiest airport in Latin America.
• Both the busiest container port and the largest port in Latin America, Santos, is located just 79 km from São Paulo city.
• Highways connect São Paulo with cities in the countryside and important neighbouring cities such as Santos, Rio de Janeiro and almost all other states in Brazil.
• A quite modern subway system connects many parts of the city. Many parts of São Paulo on the fringes of the urban area however are severely underserved.
• Public transport is not sufficient for large parts of the population, and thus traffic in Sao Paulo is a big problem, adding to air and noise pollution across São Paulo.

• São Paulo is Brazil’s economic hub. The Metro Area is responsible for a third of Brazil’s entire GDP.
• The city of São Paulo concentrates more than half of the country’s financial institutions.
• Most multinationals have their Latin American HQs in São Paulo. Netflix and Google, for example, run their entire Latin American operation out of their offices in the city’s business district.
• São Paulo is the largest financial center in Latin America and represents 100 billion USD per year in consumer potential.
• The 2014 Brazilian economic crisis, a general lack of federal government funding and a very young population has created an ecosystem in which entrepreneurs can find lots of opportunities. Combined with the fact that Brazil is the fourth largest global smartphone consumer market and boasts a digital young population, São Paulo attracts a lot of corporate innovation.
• As an effect, 15 São Paulo-founded start-ups are considered Unicorns (more than 3 have gone public since), and still have their global HQ in São Paulo: C6 Bank, Nubank, Loft, Wildlife, 99, Creditas, Pagseguro, Arco Educacao, iFood, Gympass, Loggi, Stone, Quinto Andar, VTex, Movile

• São Paulo ranks as the 18th city to attract most FDI.
• São Paulo ranks as 13th in presence and attraction for foreign companies.
• Most countries have their Consulate and/or Commercial Representation in São Paulo.

• The State of São Paulo has its own research foundation, the São Paulo Research Foundation (FAPESP), promoting research, dissemination of science, technology and providing researchers with valuable financial funding.
• There is an array of federal tax incentives that promote research activity in São Paulo. The municipality furthermore supports start-ups and University/Business joint research programs, and the fact that many multinational companies have their LATAM HQ in São Paulo allows Sao Paulo to be a strong R&D hub.
• The Department of Economic Development, Science, Technology and Innovation (SDECTI) manages the São Paulo Technological Park System (SPTec). This innovation park promotes economic and technological development across São Paulo by attracting investment.

• São Paulo has a pool of highly skilled labour, and attracts many international talents due to its global competitiveness.
• The São Paulo municipal education network is the largest system of Brazil.
• More than one million students are in the City’s Municipal Education Network, there are more than 3.800 schools and 46 Unified Education Centres (CEU).
• Most of the leading universities in Latin America are based in the city of São Paulo: USP, FGV, Insper, UNIFESP.
• The University of São Paulo (US) is the best-ranked Latin American university in all international university rankings and alone accounts for nearly half of all funds invested in R&D in the state university systems.
• The Butantan Institute is affiliated with USP, and is a world-renowned center for research on snakes and the production of toxins and antitoxins. The Butantan Institute became widely recognized recently for producing the Covid-19 vaccine CoronaVac.
• São Paulo also has a well-developed system of primary and secondary education, both public and private, and a variety of vocational-technical schools.
• The education system however favours those citizens with financial funds, due to the lower quality of public secondary education institutes.

• São Paulo boasts some of Latin America’s largest leisure and corporate events.
• Guinness World Records list the São Paulo Gay Pride Parade as the biggest pride parade in the world, attracting more than 3 million visitors annually.
• Sao Paulo is the venue for most of the continents’ largest corporate events, such as the WTM Latin America, Salao Internacional do Automovel, FEIPLASTIC, Hospitalar.
• Many of the country’s largest leisure events take place in São Paulo, such as the Virada Cultural, GP of Brazil, Bienal do Livro, SP Fashion Week.
• The Brazilian Grand Prix in the neighbourhood of Interlagos is the largest Formula 1 championship in South America, attracting thousands of tourists to the city every year.