According to authorities, the sale of firearms in Brazil has gone up by 70 per cent since 2005.

In the year 2005, Brazilian authorities had sanctioned the sale of firearms in the country in a referendum.

Around 59 million of the 92 million people who took part in the referendum backed the sales of firearms.

The state-run Controlled Products Management Directorate (DFPC) stated that 68,000 firearms got sold in the country in 2005 and the figure went up to 116,900 in the year 2009.

DFPC said .32, .38 and .380 caliber revolvers and pistols are the favorite choices.

The import of weapons, excluding weaponry bought by the army and police, increased by 190% in the past five years, it said. (With Inputs from Agencies)