Mexico: auto superstar
When presenters of the BBC’s popular Top Gear automobile show used the launch of a Mexican-made sports car earlier this year to mock the national character, they probably should have checked their facts first.
If they had, they would quickly have realised that Mexico has become one of the most efficient and competitive automobile producers in the world. Continue reading »
Peru: Humala strikes back
Peru’s president Ollanta Humala has thumbed his nose at the leftists who helped sweep him to power this week with a cabinet reshuffle and a crackdown on protestors opposing the $4.8bn Conga gold and copper mine.
The former lieutenant-colonel, who once called Venezuela’s radical leftist president Hugo Chavez a close ally, has put his old army training officer in the prime minister’s chair.
Investors have reacted positively to the changes, but what really matters is whether Humala can tackle social protests – one of the biggest investor risks in Peru – any better than his predecessor, Alan García. Continue reading »
Sudan looks to electronic bourse and commodity trading for cash
Sudan, which has gone through years of war and the break-away of oil-rich South Sudan, has decided to expand its tiny stock market in an effort to compensate for the loss of its all important oil revenues. Sudan is also going to, finally, turn the exchange electronic. Continue reading »
S. Africa: high drama in mining
The eyes of South Africa’s mining industry will all be fixed on one location on Thursday – North Gauteng High Court.
Tomorrow is D-day in a saga that has cast a shadow over the sector with the Pretoria court due to rule on a case brought by Sishen Iron Ore Company (SIOC), a subsidiary of Kumba Iron Ore, to overturn the award of a 21.4 per cent prospecting rights in Africa’s largest iron ore mine. Continue reading »
Novatek: down but not out
Novatek, Russia’s leading independent gas company, appears to have everything it needs to succeed: huge gas reserves, low cost production, good management and strong political connections.
A strategic partnership forged with Total, the French oil major, this year to tackle Russia’s flagship Arctic liquefied natural gas development, only added to the rosy outlook: Novatek, already a star performer in Russia, would become a force in the global gas industry.
However, Novatek has taken a hit since protests erupted in Moscow last week in the wake of a controversial parliamentary election. Continue reading »
Hungary: central bank under fire
Christmas may be approaching, but there seems to be no thought of peace unto all men in the Hungarian parliament, with the government of prime minister Viktor Orban proposing what opponents see as yet more divisive legislation designed to expand government influence over independent institutions.
Right now it’s the turn of the central bank – again. Not content with expanding the monetary council this year by four parliament-appointed – Orban-friendly – members, the government has proposed a bill which would allow the prime minister the right to appoint the future governor and three, instead of the current two, vice-governors. Continue reading »
[video] Tensions rise over land in south China
A Chinese man accused of participating in a riot over land claims in September died in police custody on Sunday, fanning tensions in a southern region that has become a source of persistent unrest and concern to the ruling party. Rahul Jacob reports.
Kazakhstan’s 20th anniversary gift
A lesson from Kazakhstan for natural resources companies everywhere: take advantage of a weak state by all means – but be ready to make concessions when the state gets strong.
An international oil group led by BG and Italy’s Eni on Wednesday signed a $3bn accord with Astana to transfer a stake in the Karachaganak oil and gas field to the central Asian state and end a long-running legal dispute. Continue reading »
Moody’s withdraws rating for Sino-Forest
Moody’s On Wednesday withdrew its rating for Sino-Forest, the Chinese forestry group fighting allegations of financial irregularities, as the agency believes it has insufficient information to support maintaining a credit rating. Continue reading »
Ambanis: mixed fortunes
India’s billionaire Ambani brothers couldn’t be more different: younger Anil is a fitness buff who runs marathons, elder Mukesh is a man who it’s said likes his Mumbai street food; Anil married a Bollywood starlet, Mukesh a middle class suburbanite, Anil got his MBA at Wharton, Mukesh dropped out of Stanford after one year.
One more difference became apparent Friday, perhaps a better barometer of the two as businessmen than whom they married or what they eat: Mukesh makes money; Anil? Not so much. Continue reading »
A $260m German-Japanese Xmas gift
Leszek Czarnecki, AFP
The Polish zloty is falling steeply on currency markets, and there is growing gloom about economic prospects for the EU next year. But that isn’t stopping a partnership of two insurance companies – Germany’s Talanx and Japan’s Meiji Yasuda – from striking a 912m zlotys ($260m) deal on Monday to buy Polish insurer Europa from local billionaire Leszek Czarnecki. Continue reading »
New York headlines
* Stocks drift on lingering eurozone fears
* India inflation: better, but not great
* EU treaty hopes come under strain Continue reading »
China brands (2): social media
You’ll struggle to find it on Twitter/Facebook, but China Telecom is one of the world’s most successful brands on social media.
Operating on the Chinese-language websites of Sina Weibo, Renren and the rest, the mobile phone and fixed line company has been ranked first in social media a new study of Chinese brands. Continue reading »
Eurozone worries hit Asian companies
Asian companies are worried about the unfolding eurozone crisis, but few are doing much about it beyond hoarding cash, according to a new survey from Citigroup.
Most companies in Asia have been increasing their cash levels or liquidity, and a quarter have shifted bank deposits to diversify risk. But 80 per cent have not planned for a eurozone break-up – deeming it either too unlikely or too difficult to plan for. Continue reading »
S Africa: weak rand boosts inflation
First India and now South Africa. Two reminders in one day that inflation is by no means beaten in emerging markets.
November consumer inflation quickened to 6.1 percent year-on-year, from 6.0 percent in October, a level last seen in January 2010, according to Statistics South Africa. That breaches the central bank’s 3-6 percent target range, thanks mainly to the weak rand. That in turns complicates the Reserve Bank’s plans to manage inflation at a time of weakening domestic and global growth. Continue reading »
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