City in Brazil, 72 km/45 mi NW of its port
Santos; population (1986) 8,490,700,
metropolitan area 15,280,000. It is 900
m/3,000 ft above sea level, and 2 degrees S
of the Tropic of Capricorn. It is South
America's leading industrial city, producing
electronics, steel, and chemicals; it has
meat-packing plants and is the centre of
Brazil's coffee trade. It originated as a
Jesuit mission in 1554.