Daily Archives: April 28, 2011

Mexico’s legislators miss the point

April 28, 2011 7:45 pm by beyondbrics

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By Ronald Buchanan in Mexico City

As they prepared to pack their iPads into their Volvos, Mexico’s legislators will head off this weekend for a Congressional recess until September, doubtless proud of a job well done.

Well done for the politicians themselves, of course. In the current session, progress has been made on legislation concerning politics itself, but not on what much of the nation believes to be the burning issues — and not those of only today but for many a long year. Continue reading »

Tags: politics, reform Posted in Mexico | Permalink

Americas market wrap

April 28, 2011 7:02 pm by Anora Mahmudova

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Latin American markets were mixed on Thursday, while the main MSCI Latin American index fell 1.4 per cent to 4,569, mostly dragged down by Brazilian equities. Investors were disappointed by poor earnings reports, while concerns about further tightening of monetary policy prompted sell-off for the past two days. Brazil’s benchmark Bovespa index was down 0.9 per cent to 65,673. Brazil’s currency also weakened. The real lost 0.6 per cent to 1.5762 per dollar. Continue reading »

Posted in Global | Permalink

Ivory Coast: prospects amid strife

April 28, 2011 6:45 pm by beyondbrics

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By Katrina Manson

Following months of violent unrest in Ivory Coast, the IMF predicts that west Africa’s economic giant will contract 7.5 percent this year, making it not only the worst performer on the continent in 2011, but the only sub-Saharan economy predicted to shrink. It’s a massive drop: even in the depths of its civil war in 2003 , its economy contracted only 1.7. Continue reading »

Tags: economic growth Posted in Ivory Coast | Permalink

[snap] Yandex to IPO in New York

April 28, 2011 6:09 pm by beyondbrics

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Yandex, Russia’s number-one search engine, has announced it will list shares on Nasdaq in New York, reviving plans of a long-anticipated initial public offering.

The flotation follows closely on the heels of the other internet giant Mail.ru, which pulled off an over $1bn listing in London late last year, and will test how deep runneth investors’ interest in the Russian internet, one of the fastest growing internet markets in the world.

Tags: IPOs Posted in Russia | Permalink

Hungary deals with its debt hangover

April 28, 2011 5:55 pm by Kester Eddy

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When retail banks began offering Swiss franc loans and mortgages to Hungarians eight years ago it seemed like a no-brainer: large interest rate differentials between the local forint and the slightly exotic foreign currency made the latter a far cheaper proposition when it came to borrowing for a house, car, or even a foreign holiday.

Fast forward to the global financial meltdown, and the merits of such a proposition seem a little less obvious. Continue reading »

Tags: banking, politics, swiss franc debt Posted in Hungary | Permalink

Deal of the day: Brazil’s midcap banks brace themselves

April 28, 2011 4:41 pm by beyondbrics

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By Thomas Williams and Max Gonzales of mergermarket

Brazil emerged largely unscathed from the 2008 financial crisis but one sector that came close to the brink of disaster was its crucial small to midcap banking sector, whose sources of funding all but disappeared over night.

Now the sector is getting into shape for the next meltdown with a wave of mergers and acquisitions. Continue reading »

Tags: banking, M&A, mergermarket Posted in Brazil, LatAm | Permalink

Slim: winning or whinging?

April 28, 2011 4:00 pm by beyondbrics

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By Ronald Buchanan in Mexico City

Carlos Slim berated Mexico’s trust-busters this week for its “excessive” $1 billion fine on Telcel, the Mexican unit of his América Móvil company, for monopolistic practices. The amount is no small sum, even for the world’s wealthiest man, who made his riches through a telecommunications empire that stretches from the United States to Argentina. But was the fine, which amounts to 10 per cent of the company’s revue last year, really as excessive as Slim and Telcel portray it?

A quick comparison with similar fine across the region would suggest not necessarily. Continue reading »

Posted in Mexico | Permalink

India overtaking China? Not so fast

April 28, 2011 3:35 pm by Akanksha Awal

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As census results from the world’s two most populous countries pour in, the China India demographic transition debate rages on.

The rate of population growth in China has slowed to less than 6 per cent over the past decade, while in India it surged ahead by almost 18 per cent. India’s population is on track to become the biggest in the world by 2030.

But will India be able to transform its demographic transition into long-term sustainable economic growth? Continue reading »

Tags: economy, education, population Posted in China, Global, India | Permalink

Chile: IPO party set to start next month

April 28, 2011 3:10 pm by Jude Webber

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Last year was a stellar year for Chilean stocks – the Santiago Stock Exchange hit record turnover and volume highs; the IPSA and IGPA indices rose 37.6 and 38.2 per cent respectively to historic levels and the stock market announced an ambitious planned tie-up with its peers in Peru and Colombia to create the second biggest exchange by market capitalisation.

This year, the trend-setting could continue in terms of the pace of offerings. A flood of more than $9bn in issues – including secondary offerings and IPOs – is expected this year, and it is likely to be one of the biggest years in terms of issuance that Chile has ever seen. Continue reading »

Tags: IPOs Posted in Chile | Permalink

UAE banks: falling short of expectations

April 28, 2011 1:40 pm by beyondbrics

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By Sarah Mishkin in Abu Dhabi

The UAE may be coming out a winner of the Middle Eastern unrest as it welcomes bankers and investors burned in Bahrain and North Africa.

But lingering weakness in its banking sector is a reminder that the Gulf state is still nursing its own wounds from its 2008-2009 financial and real estate crisis. Continue reading »

Tags: banking Posted in Middle East, United Arab Emirates | Permalink

Chaebols angered by calls for better governance

April 28, 2011 12:35 pm by Song Jung-a

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South Korea’s corporate giants are seething after Kwak Seung-jun, chairman of the Presidential Council for Future and Vision, called on the state-run National Pension Service to raise its voice against opaque management of family-run conglomerates, or chaebols, by exercising its voting rights to improve corporate governance.

“Big companies have become too bureaucratic. They have become so powerful that they lack the ability to innovate for themselves,” Kwak said at a policy forum on Tuesday. “Our economic vitality has been damaged by the oligopoly of big companies and the vertical integration of their affiliates.” Continue reading »

Posted in Asia, South Korea | Permalink

Soaring Malaysia-China trade vaults language barrier

April 28, 2011 11:53 am by Kevin Brown

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Chinese premier Wen Jiabao (pictured) was bearing gifts when he arrived for talks in Kuala Lumpur on Thursday, but Malaysia’s bloggers were much more interested in the welcome banner put up for him by his counterpart Najib Razak.

While the two prime ministers talked trade and investment, the blogs were running hot with complaints from some of Malaysia’s many native Chinese speakers about grammatical mistakes in the banner. Continue reading »

Tags: politics, trade Posted in China, Malaysia | Permalink

New York headlines

April 28, 2011 11:47 am by beyondbrics

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* India shuns US in $11bn fighter deal

* China 2010 census shows 1.3 bln population, older and more urban

* China property slowdown poses growth risks: World Bank

* Brazil inflation battle tests investors

* Tata Power to invest $271m in wind, solar energy Continue reading »

Posted in Global | Permalink

Volvo all smiles as Asian orders fall

April 28, 2011 11:00 am by Andrew Ward

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It is not often a chief executive welcomes a downturn in sales. Yet Leif Johansson of Volvo insists it is good news that the company’s Asian truck orders fell in the first quarter.

Johansson says the 4 per cent decline, compared with the same period last year, is a healthy sign that China is settling into a more sustainable rate of economic growth. Continue reading »

Posted in Asia, China | Permalink

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beyondbrics

Daily Archives: April 28, 2011

Mexico’s legislators miss the point

Americas market wrap

Ivory Coast: prospects amid strife

[snap] Yandex to IPO in New York

Hungary deals with its debt hangover

Deal of the day: Brazil’s midcap banks brace themselves

Slim: winning or whinging?

India overtaking China? Not so fast

Chile: IPO party set to start next month

UAE banks: falling short of expectations

Chaebols angered by calls for better governance

Soaring Malaysia-China trade vaults language barrier

New York headlines

Further reading: a shanzhai royal wedding

Volvo all smiles as Asian orders fall

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