Can Facebook become Brazil’s other social network?
Facebook seems to be everywhere these days: it reached half a billion users in July, its value is soaring and the inevitable film is coming out in October.
While the site has become synonymous with social networking in the US and Europe, the story is very different in Brazil, where Google’s Orkut is king of the hill. But as Brazilians become more globally connected, Facebook is making inroads into Latin America’s largest economy. Continue reading »
Americas markets wrap: Mexico follows Wall Street in late rally
Latin American markets fell again today as further disappointing US data and tumbling commodities prices weighed on risk appetite.
“There are worries about the US economy for sure. That’s what’s driving markets across the board,” Kathryn Rooney Vera of Bulltick Capital Markets told Reuters. Continue reading »
After brokerages, are Venezuela’s banks the next target?
The scary level of violent crime in Venezuela is in the spotlight, thanks to the government’s complete failure to control the problem. If only it were equally incompetent at fighting financial crime, a number of bankers must be thinking at the moment.
There is the president and six more executives of Banco del Sol, who have just been included on Interpol’s “wanted” list. Among others, there are the four directors of Econoinvest, who have been wasting away in a prison cell since the government seized Venezuela’s biggest broker three months ago. Continue reading »
CEE markets wrap: equities fall; Roubini warns Turkey
Despite improved business sentiment in Germany, central and eastern Europea stocks fell for a third consecutive day. The Hungarian forint was also trading down against the dollar again, after the government’s IMF confusion.
Meanwhile, Turkey became the latest object of Nouriel Roubini’s pessimism: the US economist warned the that the country’s current account deficit was being financed through volatile inflows. Continue reading »
Deal of the day: money-transfer companies evolve, as remittances rebound
By Giovanni Amodeo of mergermarket
Don’t underestimate remittances – according to the World Bank, developing countries receive two-thirds as much money from their workers abroad as they do from foreign direct investors.
But the money-transfer industry is fragmented, and needs to adapt to new competition, regulations and technologies. So like other sectors, it’s using the aftermath of the Great Recession to consolidate. Continue reading »
South Africa wants to be a Bric
In Beijing, Jacob Zuma drafts his application letter for Bric membership…
Dear Sir/Madam,
I would like to apply, on behalf of my country, to be the fifth Bric member. I think my country would be suitable for the role – providing an economy we hope will grow at 7 per cent a year, rich in natural resources, and a base for exploring other emerging markets in the region… Continue reading »
[Hey Bric Spender] Moscow: open for business 24 hours
Moscow has always been renowned for its flashy nightlife, where the clubbers keep dancing, music keeps pumping and vodka keeps flowing well into the wee hours. These days, however, Moscow’s nightlife is starting to cater to the more mundane.
For those too old and tired to tear it up on the dance floor, the Russian capital now offers a wide range of late-night alternatives. Forget clubs and discos – these days it’s all about 24-hour grocery stores, book stores and pharmacies. Continue reading »
Cambodia: Asia’s mini-tiger
Could frontier market Cambodia become a serious contender for Asian tiger status? The country certainly has a buzz about it: flights into the capital are filled with businessmen, the once rural outskirts of Phnom Penh are fast turning into one big construction site, and the roads of the city centre are gridlocked with Lexus four-wheel drives.
According to a UBS note to its clients today, the country is starting to make a roar, albeit small. And when it comes to manufacturing, Cambodia is fast becoming a ‘mini tiger’. Continue reading »
Is Russia the best Bric after all?
Russia is an easy target for the doubters. Its market trades at a heavy discount to its emerging market peers, its demographics are troubling, and its corporate governance shoddy. Small wonder then that Russia bulls are forever being asked – does Russia deserve Bric status at all?
Today Troika Dialog makes the case for Russia, pointing to areas where Russia actually outshines the BICs. Continue reading »
Turkey joins the Islamic bond revival
Kemal Ataturk, the founder of modern Turkey, was famously no fan of his country’s Muslim roots and culture, and once reportedly wished “all religions at the bottom of the sea”.
One wonders what he would have made of news that a Turkish bank that adheres to sharia, which prohibits interest, is about to sell the country’s first Islamic bond, known as sukuk. Continue reading »
New York headlines
* Dubai World eyes sale of prized assets to cut debt
* Alibaba makes a second US purchase
* Carrefour sues Chinese supermarket chain over name
* AIG to decide on AIA pre-IPO sale by next week: sources
* IMF talks move boosts Hungary Continue reading »
Asia markets wrap: stocks slip, Thailand raises rates
Asian markets fell today on global economic fears, with indices in Shanghai, Taiwan and Vietnam all losing over 2 per cent.
As expected, Thailand raised rates – while the India’s central bank hinted it might follow suit in September to control growing inflation. Continue reading »
[UPDATE] A 10-point guide to Hungary & the IMF
For those of you who followed our 10-point guide to Hungary’s dealings with the IMF, here’s a bit of news to add clarity to point number 9.
This just in: the Economy Ministry said Wednesday “the Hungarian state has not drawn upon fresh funds from the existing IMF/EU/World Bank loan since July 2009. It is able to finance itself from the market and the country reckons with relying on financing in the upcoming period as well… Based on this, there has not been and will not be need for a new loan agreement in the future.” The market was unfazed, with the Budapest SE trading up 0.64 per cent at 21,743.38. The forint fell 0.4 per cent against the euro on the news.
Check back for more on this ongoing drama.
A 10-point guide to Hungary & the IMF
Hungary is returning to talks with the International Monetary Fund – except it’s not.
This, in a nutshell, was the somewhat bizarre communication from Budapest last night, muddying a commitment from Hungary’s economy ministry that talks with the IMF would likely resume in the Autumn. Continue reading »
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