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    Rising China threatens US clout in Latin America

    Largely shut out by traditional international lenders, Argentina still had a place to turn last year for the billions of dollars it needed to renovate its decrepit railway system – Beijing. The $10bn package agreed with the China Development Bank was another clear sign of China’s surging influence in Latin America, transforming the region’s economies and undermining US dominance in its traditional “backyard.” China looms large over President Obama’s visit to Latin America as he sends a message that Washington remains relevant to a region that owes much of its robust economic health in recent years to Chinese demand. Even in those ...
    On March 16, 2011 / By
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    Global supply chain rattled by Japan quake, tsunami

    Global companies from semiconductor makers to shipbuilders faced disruptions to operations after the earthquake and tsunami in Japan destroyed vital infrastructure and knocked out factories supplying everything from high-tech components to steel. Thousands of people have been killed and millions have been left without water, electricity, homes or heat after the 8.9 magnitude quake triggered a massive tsunami which tore across a wide swathe of coastline north of Tokyo. The earthquake has forced many firms to suspend production and shares in some of Japan’s biggest companies have tumbled, with Toyota Corp and Sony Corp falling eight percent a...
    On March 14, 2011 / By
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    Huge response to Irish Nationwide debt buyback

    Nationalised lender Irish Nationwide has had a near 100 percent take-up for its coercive buyback of £146.2m ($236m) of subordinated debt at an 80 percent discount. The lender, being wound down as part of an EU/IMF bailout, said investors holding £125.7m of bonds due 2016 and £20.5m of notes due 2018 had agreed to the buyback by an early deadline of March 8. Irish Nationwide had said the offer applied to £126m of bonds due 2015 and £20.6m due 2018. The company has extended the deadline for its early tender payment to March 18 due to the strong response. Bondholders who do not accept the offer by March 18 will be offered 0.001 percent of t...
    On March 10, 2011 / By
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    Little Britain stands back as eurozone advances

    Do what you like. Just count us out. That, in essence, is the message that Britain is sending its European partners as the 17 countries that share the euro move towards closer economic integration. In a departure from half a century of British diplomacy, PM Cameron has adopted a strategy of benign disengagement from the core project of the EU to appease the numerous eurosceptics in his Conservative party. Rather than seeking like his predecessors to shape and restrain European integration, he is watching from the sidelines as an inner circle of eurozone states launch separate annual summits and move forward with coordinating economic policy. ...
    On March 9, 2011 / By
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    Will it be Obama vs the economy in 2012?

    With a leading Republican candidate yet to emerge, the biggest risk to President Obama’s quest for a second term next year is a jobless rate that has hovered between 9 and 10 percent for months. March 4’s jobless report is expected to show nonfarm payrolls soared in February by 185,000 jobs, but the overall unemployment rate is nonetheless expected to edge up to 9.1 percent. Former House speaker Newt Gingrich is edging toward entering the presidential race but heavyweight Republicans like him have yet to formally line up to oppose Obama in the 2012 election, making the monthly unemployment report one of the best early guides to the presid...
    On March 4, 2011 / By
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    Nedbank’s FY profit rises as bad debts decline

    South Africa’s Nedbank beat expectations with a nine percent increase in annual profit, helped by a fall in bad debts, and said it expected further growth in the coming year. South Africa’s fourth-largest bank, like its rivals, was lacerated by bad debts in 2009, after a recession slashed more than a million jobs and left many consumers with ballooning household debt. Faced with weak loan demand, South African banks are increasingly looking to cut costs and boost non-interest revenue, such as fees and commissions. “What was encouraging was non-interest revenue again. They keep on saying it and they keep on doing it. They definitely are ...
    On February 28, 2011 / By
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    Company of the decade

    While crafting the accolade of Company of the Decade, it has become the opinion of the World Finance editorial team that – more than any other time in the past hundred years – the preceding 10 years has been the time for businesses to shine. During its highs and lows, the global economy of the past 10 years has shown favour to those who have adhered to conservative strategies, and crushed those who have been reckless. This most recent depression has left few unaffected, and the companies that have come through it face an increasingly competitive business environment. No one has been safe from the changes that have occurred, no matter thei...
    On February 24, 2011 / By
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    World Bank: Peru will record 9% growth in 2011

    Peruvians are very proud of one important fact: the country is growing and World Bank figures prove it. 2011 will be remembered as the year the Peruvian economy grew nine percent, an incredible rate representing the highest individual economic growth in Latin America and indeed the world. Peru’s economic success is based in no small part on a clear legal framework allowing any individual or legal entity an easy entry into the market, as well as an orderly and relatively quick exit from it should financial problems arise. Insolvency – governing lawInsolvency matters in Peru are governed generally by the Bankruptcy Law (Ley General del Sist...
    On February 22, 2011 / By
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    Looking after your future

    Porvenir is a leading provider of pension and severance pay fund management services in Colombia, South America’s second most populous country after Brazil. The company has 33 offices and 10 service modules located in Colombia’s largest cities, as well as a strong nationwide sales force that rivals most of its competitors. Additionally, as part of Grupo Aval, one of the largest multinational financial companies operating in Colombia, customers have access to an additional 1,000 contact points through its branch network. This strong positioning means that in August 2010 the firm managing the mandatory pension savings funds of 2.9 million p...
    On February 22, 2011 / By
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    IMF: Barbadian economy will grow 2.5% in 2011

    With the collapse of natural gas and oil prices, Trinidad and Tobago operated on a budgetary deficit to the tune of TTD3.8bn in the 2010 fiscal year. Net public sector debt is estimated at 49.4 percent of GDP, and the budget deficit is expected to grow to TTD7.7bn in 2011 while debt levels remain at just under 50 percent of GDP. If the government intends to borrow locally to meet the deficit, now is as good a time as any as interest rates are very low. The respective yields on 90–day and 180-day Treasury bills have fallen from 1.44 percent and 1.51 percent in November 2009 to a mere 0.35 percent and 0.48 percent respectively in November 201...
    On February 22, 2011 / By