FGV/EPGE - Graduate School of Economics will welcome next Monday, July 21, President of the European Commission, José Manuel Durão Barroso, who will give a lecture on Europe and Brazil in the Current International Context.Durão Barroso will analyze the current Brazilian economic scenario - characterized by low growth - in the light of the experience of Europe, whose economy also faced long periods of underperformance, as well as in the light of the American case. Moreover, given the importance of the European bloc to the Brazilian economy, the director of FGV/EPGE Rubens Penha Cysne calls attention to another key point that should be discussed at the occasion. One of the most important issues of current economic outlook concerns the long-term potential conflict in the Eurozone. There is a single currency for 18 countries (among the 28 in the European Union), but quite different dynamic productivity gains among them. Put in another way, there is no effective nominal exchange rate, but the actual rates of countries with larger financial productivity depreciate continuously, facilitating its net exports. This has generated solid macroeconomic imbalances and strong potential for political conflicts. How the evolution of this process will be from now on is a topic that could be addressed in the lecture, said the professor, who also coordinates the event.The European Union, made up of 28 countries, is a very important trading partner for Brazil, accounting for approximately 25% of Brazilian exports and 25% of imports. Over the past five years, bilateral trade between the EU and Brazil grew an average of 8.4% per year, which shows the dynamism and the complementarity of the business relationship between the two, according to the website of the European Union Delegation in Brazil. The European bloc also leads foreign investment in the country, surpassing the United States and China.Europe and Brazil in the Current International Context will take place at FGV's main offices in Rio de Janeiro, from 10 am to 12 pm. Entrance is free. To sign up, please click here.