FATORES E VÁCUOS JURÍDICOS QUE ATUAM COMO BARREIRAS NA CIRCULAÇÃO DE MERCADORIAS NAS ALFÂNDEGAS DE FRONTEIRA DE SANTA CRUZ, NA BOLÍVIA, E MATO GROSSO DO SUL, NO BRASIL – 2024

Abstract

This study analyzes the impacts of foreign trade policy and export restrictions on Bolivian products, which are predominantly based on primary commodities. Bolivia undertook a process of trade liberalization that resulted in a significant reduction of tariff levels, reaching an average tariff rate of 8.2% by 2005, under a most-favored-nation framework. This liberalization was accompanied by the abandonment of import quotas, supervisory mechanisms, monopolies, export subsidies, and other non-tariff measures, while protective instruments such as anti-dumping policies were rarely employed. Moreover, the country does not generally adopt quantitative restrictions or import licensing, except in cases related to public health measures. Bolivia maintains an association agreement with Mercosur as an associate member, and the bloc constitutes a major destination for Bolivian exports. According to estimates from the Bolivian Institute of Foreign Trade (IBCE), Bolivian exports to Brazil do not yield significant benefits for the exporting country; nonetheless, the bilateral trade balance tends to favor Brazil. Despite these asymmetries, Bolivia continues to sustain its export flows to the Brazilian market, revealing structural dependencies and persistent dynamics in cross-border trade relations along the Brazil–Bolivia frontier.

Keywords: tariff barriers; circulation of goods; Brazil–Bolivia border.