Monthly Archives: November 2011

[Snap] Brazil cuts rates by 50bp

Nov 30, 2011 10:10pm by Samantha Pearson

Share this on

Brazil’s central bank cuts interest rates by 50 basis points to 11 per cent, as expected. Here’s the (very short) statement:

Continuing the process of adjusting monetary conditions, the central bank’s monetary policy committee (Copom) decided unanimously to reduce the Selic to 11 per cent, without bias. The Copom understands that by timely mitigating the effects of a more restrictive global environment, a moderate adjustment in the base rate is consistent with the convergence of the inflation scenario with the target in 2012.

Tags: Brazil central bank, Brazil interest rates, monetary policy Posted in Brazil | Permalink

Brazil rates: not quite so mad after all?

Nov 30, 2011 7:36pm by Samantha Pearson

Share this on

Call it foresight, or simply good luck, but Brazil’s decision to start slashing interest rates back in August seems to have been the right move after all.

Many thought the bank’s president Alexandre Tombini (left) was mad (or at least under strict orders from the president) when he kicked off an easing cycle on August 31, apparently oblivious to the fact that annual inflation was rising above the 6.5 per cent limit of the target range. Continue reading »

Tags: Brazil inflation, Brazil interest rates, interest rates, monetary policy Posted in Brazil | Permalink

Usiminas: minorities feel flat-rolled

Nov 30, 2011 7:11pm by Joe Leahy

Share this on

Voting shares of Usinas Siderurgicas de Minas Gerais, Brazil’s largest flat steel producer, fell to their lowest in two years this week after Italian-Argentine rival, Technint, bought a stake in the company.

But should smaller shareholders feel aggrieved? Continue reading »

Tags: industry, iron & steel Posted in Brazil | Permalink

CEE markets wrap: a huge bounce

Nov 30, 2011 5:30pm by David Keohane

Share this on

Central and eastern Europe had its best Wednesday in a very long time as the world’s largest central banks announced a co-ordinated move to boost liquidity in the global financial system and China moved to ease monetary policy. The effect on the region was immediate and aggressive with bourses in Russia, Hungary and Poland jumping more than 4 per cent.

However it’s not at all clear how long this rally will last. Have the world’s central banks simply bought time and is a real solution to the crisis still painfully lacking? Continue reading »

Tags: CEE, currencies, equities, markets Posted in Europe | Permalink

India: fixing the deficit, desperately

Nov 30, 2011 4:24pm by Neil Munshi

Share this on

Desperate times call for desperate but also, frankly, practical measures.

Since the Indian government has been unable to divest itself of $7.7bn in equity in its listed state-controlled companies, it is considering having 26 of those companies buy back shares from the government to pare away at its fiscal deficit. Continue reading »

Tags: equities, India economy Posted in Asia, India | Permalink

Poland: keeping the bears at bay

Nov 30, 2011 3:45pm by Jan Cienski

Share this on

Poland’s economy grew by an unexpectedly strong 4.2 per cent in the year to the third quarter, compared to a market consensus of 4 per cent. It’s the latest in a series of better than expected economic news and it sent the zloty rising sharply against the dollar and the euro. Continue reading »

Tags: CEE, eurozone, GDP Posted in Europe, Poland | Permalink

Ranbaxy’s high blood pressure day

Nov 30, 2011 2:44pm by Neil Munshi

Share this on

Wednesday should have been a great day for India’s largest pharmaceutical company, Ranbaxy Laboratories. After all, it is one of two companies that, come Thursday, will be allowed to sell a generic version of Lipitor, Pfizer’s blockbuster anti-cholesterol drug.

Instead, shares in Ranbaxy, which had global sales of nearly $1.9bn last year, fell 3.88 per cent on news that the FDA had yet to award the company approval to market Lipitor, the best-selling drug in the pharma industry’s history, in the US. Continue reading »

Tags: pharmaceuticals, Ranbaxy Posted in Asia, India | Permalink

Peru: Humala’s mining migraine

Nov 30, 2011 2:20pm by Naomi Mapstone

Share this on

Once again Peruvian protesters have halted work on a major mining project – this time Newmont Mining Corp’s $4.8bn Conga gold mine.

After a week of protests which shut down the province of Cajamarca and saw at least 20 people injured, the company said it had suspended construction at the request of the government “in order to restore peace”. Continue reading »

Tags: mining, mining protests, regulation Posted in LatAm, Peru | Permalink

Thailand cuts rates but what next?

Nov 30, 2011 1:22pm by Gwen Robinson

Share this on

It was the rate cut Thailand had to have, according to economists who almost unanimously predicted the country’s central bank would end its two-year tightening streak on Wednesday and ease monetary policy to help counter the devastating impact of floods that began in July. Continue reading »

Tags: interest rates, monetary policy Posted in Asia, Thailand | Permalink

Zimbabwe’s fiscal train wreck

Nov 30, 2011 12:47pm by Tony Hawkins

Share this on

Given the severe political, as well as economic, constraints within which he is forced to operate, Tendai Biti, Zimbabwe’s finance minister (pictured), did well to present a workmanlike, balanced 2012 budget to parliament last week.

Trying to secure consensus in a coalition administration in continuous electioneering mode is a near-impossible task, especially when it comes to the murky area of revenues from the country’s controversial Marange diamond fields. Continue reading »

Tags: deficit, economy, fiscal policy, mining, tax Posted in Africa, Zimbabwe | Permalink

China to the world: time for action

Nov 30, 2011 12:03pm by Jonathan Wheatley

Share this on

Well, we had a week’s warning and now it’s begun in earnest. China is in loosening mode. Not only that: it wants the world to know it. Continue reading »

Tags: China RRR, eurozone, GDP, monetary policy Posted in Asia, China | Permalink

New York headlines

Nov 30, 2011 11:53am by beyondbrics

Share this on

* S&P rates China banks higher than US rivals

* China cuts Reserve Requirement Ratio

* Qatar raises $5bn from dollar bonds in first global sale in 2 years

* Indian GDP growth drops below 7% Continue reading »

Posted in Global | Permalink

[snap] China cuts RRR

Nov 30, 2011 11:16am by Josh Noble

Share this on

The People’s Bank of China has cut its reserve requirement ratio – the amount of cash commercial banks must park with the central bank – by 50bps.

It’s the first major piece of monetary loosening in almost 3 years, although it was prefigured by last week’s cut in RRRs at some rural banks. It’ll likely be taken as a positive for the markets, but it does make you wonder how worried policymakers are getting about growth. PMI on Thursday should shed some light.

Tags: China RRR, monetary policy Posted in Asia, China | Permalink

Slump in shipping costs suggests Chinese exports to Europe slumping too

Nov 30, 2011 11:06am by David Keohane

Share this on

Shipping costs between China and Europe are plummeting as demand from the beleaguered eurozone contracts sharply. And while falling demand might not be much of a surprise the speed of the drop in transport costs is an eyebrow raiser – it has slumped by 39 per cent in just under 3 months, according to Bloomberg.

A worrying indicator of what’s to come. Continue reading »

Tags: China economy, eurozone, imports, Shipping Posted in Asia, China, Europe | Permalink

Infosys: include the poor in development, or face the consequences

Nov 30, 2011 10:22am by beyondbrics

Share this on

By S.D. Shibulal, CEO of Infosys

A lot has changed since the Bric acronym was coined. Ten years and two economic recessions later, the centre of gravity of global economic activity has shifted, new markets have emerged and the global economy is more integrated than ever before. Advances in technology are redefining the way we connect and interact with our consumers. Sustainable consumption has gained centre-stage. The world as we know it today is quite different from what it was a decade ago.

But formidable challenges remain, notably in closing the gap between rich and poor by promoting inclusive economic growth. Continue reading »

Tags: Brics at 10 Posted in Global | Permalink

Older entries

beyondbrics

The emerging markets hub

About this blog

Headlines email

Blog guide

News and comment from more than 40 emerging economies, headed by Brazil, Russia, India and China.

Follow @beyondbrics

'Like' our beyondbrics Facebook page, where we showcase a top story of the day

Sign up for our news headlines and markets snaphot service. We have two emails per day - London and New York headlines (sent at approx 6am and 12pm GMT).

Pretty much everything you need to know about beyondbrics is in our About this site page. But briefly:

To comment, please register for free with FT.com and read our policy on submitting comments.

There is an overall beyondbrics RSS feed, as well as feeds for all our countries, tags and authors. Learn more in our full RSS guide.

All posts are published in UK time.

Get in touch with us - your comments, advice and even complaints. Find out how to contact the team.

See the full list of FT blogs.

BB shortcuts

Regulars

Series

M	T	W	T	F	S	S
	1	2	3	4	5	6
7	8	9	10	11	12	13
14	15	16	17	18	19	20
21	22	23	24	25	26	27
28	29	30

beyondbrics

Monthly Archives: November 2011

[Snap] Brazil cuts rates by 50bp

Brazil rates: not quite so mad after all?

Usiminas: minorities feel flat-rolled

CEE markets wrap: a huge bounce

India: fixing the deficit, desperately

Poland: keeping the bears at bay

Ranbaxy’s high blood pressure day

Peru: Humala’s mining migraine

Thailand cuts rates but what next?

Zimbabwe’s fiscal train wreck

China to the world: time for action

New York headlines

[snap] China cuts RRR

Slump in shipping costs suggests Chinese exports to Europe slumping too

Infosys: include the poor in development, or face the consequences

Global equities macromap

Most popular posts

Number of the day

Most commented

beyondbrics

The emerging markets hub

BB registration

BB shortcuts

beyondbrics team

Regional teams:

Emerging markets data

Archive

What we’re writing about

What we’re reading