The Global Business Travel Association (GBTA) released its latest GBTA BTI Outlook report on Brazil as part of its semiannual series on March 13.

The report indicates that strengthening domestic and global economies will place Brazil on a strong growth path in 2013, with the index increasing by more than 40 points.

According to the report, total business travel spending in Brazil is expected to grow 14.3% in 2013 to $34.5 billion. In 2014, it is expected to grow another 16.1% to $40 billion.

Domestic business travel spending has grown 8.3% a year over the last 12 years, and is forecast to grow 12.9% to $27 billion in 2013, the report said. In addition, international outbound travel spending is set to reach $7.1 billion in 2013, a 20.2% increase.

Brazil is currently ranked 8th in the world, up one place from 2011. With current growth rates, Brazil is forecast to surpass Italy, France and the UK over the next two years.

The main challenge in the market is a high demand for hotel rooms and air travel, and a constrained supply could hurt the business travel market with the upcoming World Cup and Olympics in Brazil.