SAO PAULO, a State of Brazil extending from 19° 54' to 25° 15' S. lat. and bounded north by Matto Grosso and Minas Geraes, east by Minas Geraes, Rio de Janeiro and the Atlantic, south by the Atlantic and Parana, and west by Parana and Matto Grosso. Pop. (1933 est.), area, 95,434 sq.m. The State has a coast-line 373 m. long, skirted closely by the Serra do Mar, below which is a narrow coastal zone broken by lagoons, tidal channels and mountain spurs. Above is an extensive plateau, 1,500 to 3,00o ft. above sea-level. Isolated ranges of low eleva tion break the surface in places, but in general the State may be described as a table-land with an undulating surface sloping west ward to the Parana. The extreme eastern part, however, has an eastward slope and belongs to the Parahyba basin. The State is traversed by a number of large rivers, tributaries of the Parana, the largest of which are the Rio Grande, Dourados, Tiete, Agua pehy, Tigre and Paranapanema. The eastern slopes of the Serra do Mar are well wooded but there are wide grassy plains (cameos) on the plateau. A large part of western Sao Paulo is still unsettled. The coastal zone has a hot climate, and it also has a heavy rain fall. On the plateau the rainfall is sufficiently abundant, but the air is drier and more bracing, the sun temperature being high and the nights cool. The open country is singularly healthy, but the river lowlands are generally not so.
The great industries are agricultural, and the most conspic uous is coffee production. sao Paulo produces more than one-half the total Brazilian crop and its one great port, Santos, is the largest coffee-shipping port in the world. The terra roxa (red earth) lands of the central and northern parts of the State are peculiarly favourable. This soil is ferruginous, pasty and free from stone, and it covers the higher surface of the plateau with a thick layer. The best plantations are on the high divides be tween the river courses, and not in their eroded valleys. The "Institute for the Permanent Defence of Coffee" which stores the crop in huge warehouses in the interior, from which it is released only on order, controls entries to Santos and attempts to influence the demand for Brazilian coffee in foreign countries.
The other agricultural products of the State include sugar, cotton, rice, tobacco, Indian corn, beans, mandioca, bananas and other fruits, and many of the vegetables of the temperate zone. Cereals can be grown, but climatic conditions have been consid ered unfavourable. Sugar-cane was the first exotic to be cultivated in Sao Paulo, and was its principal product in colonial times. Cotton was largely produced, especially during the American Civil War. The industry nearly disappeared, but now is again im proving because of the demand for fibre by the national cotton factories. The cultivation of rice also is increasing, under the stimulus of protective duties. Although S5.0 Paulo is not classed as a pastoral region, the State possesses large herds of cattle, which are being improved by the importation of pure-bred stock from Europe. Butter and cheese are produced to a limited extent, and the supply of fresh milk to the cities is attracting some attention.
Attention is also given, to a limited extent, to the breeding of horses and mules. The most general and profitable of the animal industries is the breeding of swine, which thrive remarkably on the plateau. The State has an excellent agricultural school and ex periment station at Piracicaba, and there is also a zootechnic sta tion near the capital.
The principal manufactures are cotton and woollen textiles, jute bagging, aramina fabrics, furniture, iron and bronze, coffee machinery and agricultural implements, artificial liquors and food products. Steam power is generally used, though both electric and hydraulic power are employed. The iron mines and works at Ypanema, near Sorocaba, a Government enterprise, are one of the oldest industries of the State, dating back to the first quar ter of the 19th century.