The most liberal places to do business in Brazil

A decade ago, a running joke in Brazilian politics was to say that if you put all the Brazilian liberals together in one place, they couldn’t fill a camper van. But little by little, liberal ideas—for policymaking and business practices—have gained ground. Since 2007, at least 26 liberal think tanks have set up shop, advocating for less state intervention in the Brazilian economy.

And so far, it has worked.

According to data from the Mackenzie Economic Freedom Center, Brazilian states have become more liberal, imposing fewer business regulations. The think tank adopted the same methodology used by Canadian public policy think tank the Fraser Institute in its “Economic Freedom of North America” report.

The index considers...