The Program for the Competitive Substitution of Imports (PSCI) was created in 2003 to encourage regional integration through the expansion of trade between Brazil and other countries in South America.

In recent years, Brazil’s trade within South America has significantly increased. Despite these increases, trade imbalances persist; most South American countries have trade deficits with Brazil.

The PSCI is a program of the Department of Trade and Investment Promotion administered by its Division of Commercial Intelligence. The program stimulates trade between Brazil and South American countries by substituting – whenever commercially feasible – Brazilian imports from outside South America with imports from within the region.