Daily Archives: May 4, 2011

Americas market wrap

May 4, 2011 8:22 pm by Anora Mahmudova

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Latin American stocks fell sharply on Wednesday, following US markets lower, as investors were disappointed by poor employment figures from the ADP and slower rate of growth in the service sector. The MSCI Latin American index fell 1.2 per cent to 4,425, the lowest level in the past 6 weeks. The only exception to the regional gloom was Peru, with the Lima General index rallying 6.1 per cent to 20,678. Continue reading »

Posted in Global | Permalink

Another blow for Carlos Slim

May 4, 2011 7:22 pm by beyondbrics

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By Ron Buchanan in Mexico City

The glacial pace of litigation in Mexico has long been one of the major strengths of Carlos Slim’s dominance in telecommunications.

Reductions were frequently imposed by the telecoms regulator, Cofetel, on the interconnection fees that Slim’s América Móvil charged its competitors. Equally frequently, however, América Móvil would halt the reductions by introducing injunctions in the courts.

But no longer – or so it would seem from a Supreme Court decision on Tuesday. Continue reading »

Tags: regulation, telecoms Posted in LatAm, Mexico | Permalink

Ukraine’s Firtash adds to his empire

May 4, 2011 7:08 pm by Roman Olearchyk

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Dmitry Firtash, the Ukrainian billionaire, has splashed out $400m for a controlling 90 per cent stake in Nadra, one of Ukraine’s most troubled banks.

The acquisition was announced by Nadra on May 4 and symbolises the renewed strength and cash-rich position of Firtash one year into the presidency of Viktor Yanukovich (pictured), with whom he has close relations. Continue reading »

Tags: banking, central banks, investment Posted in Europe, Ukraine | Permalink

India’s energy interests in Australia

May 4, 2011 4:55 pm by Akanksha Awal

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India’s hunger for coal is just as insatiable as China’s, and in the race with the Middle Kingdom for foreign acquisitions, it would appear that India is outpacing China.

One acquisitive Indian company to watch is India’s Adani Enterprises, the country’s largest coal importer, which made a $2bn acquisition of Australia’s Abbot Point coal terminal this week. The deal, Adani’s second in Australia, underlines its ambitions to play a role in country’s coal sector. Continue reading »

Tags: energy, investment, M&A, mining Posted in India | Permalink

Glencore: the Abu Dhabi link

May 4, 2011 4:39 pm by Stefan Wagstyl

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The emergence of Abu Dhabi as the biggest outside investor in Glencore speaks volumes for the willingness of the Gulf state to develop deep ties with global business groups.

In making industrial investments, Abu Dhabi is following in the footsteps of Kuwait, which more than 20 years ago bought into British Petroleum and other US and European companies. But Abu Dhabi is putting far more emphasis on trying to draw its partners into helping to develop the Gulf state economy. As Glencore will have been told, this is not just about money. It’s about building Abu Dhabi into a global commercial centre. Continue reading »

Tags: commodities, IPOs Posted in Global, United Arab Emirates | Permalink

Italy’s Intesa strikes Vietnam deal

May 4, 2011 4:33 pm by beyondbrics

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By Giulia Segreti in Rome

Intesa SanPaolo, Italy’s largest retail bank by assets, on Wednesday signed its first agreement with a Vietnamese bank, Vietcombank, to support corporate clients investing in both countries.

Under the agreement Intesa will cooperate with Vietcombank through its corporate and investment banking division to offer banking and advisory services to clients starting up or expanding businesses in Vietnam. Similar support will be offered to Vietnamese companies investing in Italy. Continue reading »

Tags: banking, investment, trade Posted in Asia, Vietnam | Permalink

Telekom Austria sweetens its bid for Telekom Srbija

May 4, 2011 4:08 pm by Neil MacDonald

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Telekom Austria has come back with a revised offer worth €1.1bn to keep the door open on taking over Serbia’s state-owned telephone company. The Vienna-based group originally offered a conditional €800m-950m for the 51 per cent stake in Telekom Srbija, far short of the €1.4bn minimum set by the Serbian government.

Sector analysts insisted the government was asking too much. Other would-be bidders, including Deutsche Telekom, were put off by the inflated price tag, which was tacked on by skittish politicians after the formal tender. Continue reading »

Tags: FDI, investment, M&A, telecoms Posted in Europe, Serbia | Permalink

Has Africa’s time come? E&Y thinks so.

May 4, 2011 3:30 pm by Andrew England

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As executives and politicians descend on Cape Town for Africa’s World Economic Forum, Ernst & Young has a succinct message for foreign investors – “It’s time for Africa.”

In a new report, Africa Attractiveness Survey, the professional services company is forecasting that foreign direct investment into the continent will reach $150bn by 2015, up from less than $100bn last year. While that remains below a 2008 peak when FDI topped $200bn, the mineral-rich continent looks set to becoming increasingly attractive long term to international investors, particularly in emerging markets, E&Y reckons. Continue reading »

Tags: FDI, infrastructure, investment Posted in Africa, Global | Permalink

Mexico buys gold, a lot of it

May 4, 2011 3:11 pm by Jack Farchy

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This article originally appeared on ft.com

The central bank of Mexico bought nearly 100 tonnes of gold in February and March, the latest emerging market country to turn to bullion as a means of diversifying away from the faltering dollar.

The purchase is one of the largest by a central bank in recent history. The gold, worth $4.6bn at current prices, is equivalent to about 3.5 per cent of annual mined output. Continue reading »

Tags: gold Posted in Mexico | Permalink

Yandex: a risky prospect?

May 4, 2011 2:40 pm by Courtney Weaver

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Yandex, Russia’s biggest internet firm, is all over the news these days. Last week it announced plans for an estimated $1bn listing on New York’s Nasdaq exchange. This week, the company’s name is popping up in the Russian media for other, less redeeming, reasons.

The search engine provider has come forward to say it was forced to give the FSB, Russia’s federal security service, personal information about Russians who had used a Yandex payment service to donate to a whistleblowing website. This raises the question: is Yandex still an attractive company for foreign investors?

Tags: internet, IPOs Posted in Russia | Permalink

Renren IPO: over the top?

May 4, 2011 2:33 pm by Stefan Wagstyl

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Renren has got investors running for its IPO. The Chinese social network company’s flotation on the New York Stock Exchange was priced on Wednesday at the top of its expected range giving it a market cap of $5.5bn.

That’s more than 70 times last year’s revenues : almost three times more than the 25x price put on Facebook by Goldman Sachs when it invested in the US group. Not bad for a company that has yet to make a profit and faces some of the world’s toughest internet rivals. Continue reading »

Tags: internet Posted in China | Permalink

Vietnam hikes, battles inflation

May 4, 2011 1:11 pm by Alexandra Stevenson

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Vietnam’s central bank is at it again, raising rates for the sixth time this year. On Wednesday the State Bank of Vietnam raised its repurchase rate by 100bp to 14 per cent. This is the highest rate in the emerging market world, but with inflation running at more than 17 per cent, the move is unlikely to be the last.

Vietnam’s main benchmark index closed up 1.35 per cent at a jubilant 7-week high of 480.08 points. Continue reading »

Tags: economic growth, inflation, monetary policy Posted in Vietnam | Permalink

The Latin American “quarter century”?

May 4, 2011 12:52 pm by John Paul Rathbone

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Although not as grandiose as Asia’s claim to the coming “century”, some of the self-congratulatory ballyhoo about the “Latin American decade” is starting to subside. The IMF warned this week that the continent’s economies might be overheating and in danger of a crash. Others have recently done the same.

Yet, at the same time, there is a palpable sense of optimism on the continent that its recent gains can be sustained. How to reconcile the debate? One way is to take a long step back. Continue reading »

Tags: equities, investment Posted in Global, LatAm | Permalink

New York headlines

May 4, 2011 12:05 pm by beyondbrics

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* IPO values Glencore at $48bn-$58bn

* Mexican central bank buys 100 tonnes of gold

* US lays bare mistrust of Pakistan

* US asked India for more data on fighter setback

* South African jobless rate increases to 25% Continue reading »

Posted in Global | Permalink

Islamic banking: gaining traction in ME

May 4, 2011 11:44 am by Sarah Mishkin

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The Middle East may be the heart of Islam and its investors may have plenty of liquidity, but the region’s Islamic banking sector remains relatively immature and undeveloped compared to markets in Muslim south Asia.

But although the recent turmoil in the Middle East has certainly done the local Islamic finance industry no favours, new financial products and regulations are appearing across the region, helping the sector mature both in core Gulf countries and those such as Jordan and Oman that have so far had have limited sharia-compliant options. Continue reading »

Tags: banking, bonds, capital markets, central banks Posted in Jordan, Middle East, Oman, Qatar, United Arab Emirates | Permalink

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beyondbrics

Daily Archives: May 4, 2011

Americas market wrap

Another blow for Carlos Slim

Ukraine’s Firtash adds to his empire

India’s energy interests in Australia

Glencore: the Abu Dhabi link

Italy’s Intesa strikes Vietnam deal

Telekom Austria sweetens its bid for Telekom Srbija

Has Africa’s time come? E&Y thinks so.

Mexico buys gold, a lot of it

Yandex: a risky prospect?

Renren IPO: over the top?

Vietnam hikes, battles inflation

The Latin American “quarter century”?

New York headlines

Islamic banking: gaining traction in ME

Global equities macromap

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