Folha d S. Paulo has uncovered documents showing that Brazil wants to give its struggling neighbor a break on trade deals. It’s a sign of how deep are Brazilian fears about Argentina’s economic health.
Category: Economy
Worldcrunch LA STAMPA, CORRIERE DELLA SERA, IL SOLE 24 ORE (Italy) TURIN – Sergio Pininfarina, among history’s most accomplished car designers and a symbol of “Made in Italy” style, has died at the age of 85. Italian media reported Tuesday morning that Pininfarina died at his home the night before after a long illness. Noted […]
Jiang Dalong beat out a dozen competitors to win a bid to takeover failed Swedish carmaker Saab. Having made his millions in renewable energy, Jiang talks to Caixin about Saab’s (green) road back from the dead.
Essay: As the Barclays “Libor-gate” financial scandal unravels, France’s leading business daily says it’s time London lawmakers and City bankers should stop lecturing continental Europe and take a good hard look in the
Centuries after Potosí, Bolivia’s legendary but now dried-up silver reserve, the small South American country may have struck a new enormous source of precious metal wealth. But locals may stand in the way.
Navalny’s home was ransacked by police barely two weeks ago, and he spent 15 days in jail in May. So why did the government support his appointment to the board of Aeroflot, Russia’s largest airline?
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China Invests Big In Fellow BRIC Brazil
Worldcrunch FOLHA DE S. PAULO (Brazil) BEIJING – China made its largest investment of early 2012 in fellow BRIC Brazil by acquiring 30% of Petrogal Brasil, a subsidiary of Portuguese company Galp Energia. State-owned Sinopec, or Chinese Petrochemical Company, paid $4.8 billion for the aquisition. Overall, China invested $21.4 billion abroad from January to March, […]
Worldcrunch REUTERS, NEW YORK TIMES, WALL STREET JOURNAL Rupert Murdoch’s News Corp is considering splitting itself into two separate companies, according to a number of news reports. The Wall Street Journal, which is owned by News Corp, said that the TV and entertainment businesses would be separated from publishing in the proposed division. Australian stock […]
One in three companies in Germany was founded by a non-German. Discriminated against in the job market, immigrants often find that creating their own company is the only way to make it.
AP, ICN, EL MUNDO LONDON – In the latest hit for a euro-zone economy, Fitch ratings agency downgraded Cyprus’ sovereign credit grade to junk status, lowering the country’s rating by one notch to BB+ from BBB-, AP reports. “Fitch acknowledges that its estimates of the losses and capital needs of Cypriot banks are subject to […]
Chinese multinationals are growing faster than their competitors anywhere else in the world, but they still have a long road ahead until they can become truly global.
Editorial: “When France sets a 75% top income tax rate, we will roll out the red carpet, and we will welcome more French businesses,” recently announced British Prime Minister David Cameron. Et voila…a French reply.
Worldcrunch LES ECHOS (France), LE TEMPS (Switzerland), BLOOMBERG PARIS – The Moody’s ratings agency’s downgrading of 15 top Western banks reverberated in world financial capitals Friday, though markets held relatively steady in both Asia and Europe. The announcement, made late on Thursday, sparked reactions Friday morning from top bank managers and analysts in Europe. One […]
While giving the rest of Europe lessons on austerity, Germany has quietly been accumulating debt, a situation that will worsen with the planned social reforms and tax cuts.
Worldcrunch NOVAYA GAZETA (Russia) MOSCOW – Russian aviation has been making an impact in all the wrong ways. Last May, a new airplane on a demonstration flight in Indonesian crashed into a mountain, killing all 50 people on board. And now Novaya Gazeta has revealed that Russian airlines are using scheduling tricks to cut the […]
In today’s economy, non-governmental organizations (NGOs) are forced them to build internationalization strategies and corporate culture.
Two new studies delve into the question of gender diversity in the workplace. Among the findings: businesswomen are more “fairy godmother” than “queen bee.”
Analysis: The depreciation of the Russian ruble hurts the whole country, especially the poorer masses who don’t deal in dollars. And no, you can’t just blame it on foreigners.
Analysis: Argentina has a new system to restrict citizens’ ability to purchase dollars. Is this an attempt to stabilize the Argentinian pesos or crack down on tax evaders?
Worldcrunch CNN, DIE ZEIT, BLOOMBERG LONDON – World leaders have enthusiastically welcomed the narrow election victory of Greece’s pro-bailout New Democracy and Pasok parties –world markets, not so much. The center-right New Democracy and center-left Pasok parties won a combined 162 seats in Greece’s parliamentary elections, enough to form a majority in the 300-member parliament, […]
From 7-Eleven convenience stores to the retail giants Muji and Uniqlo, Japanese brands are rapidly expanding across China, with 50,000 stores and counting.
Analysis: Greece or no Greece, the problem of the European single currency runs deeper. So no tricks — no Northern and Southern or National versions of the euro — can save it. Europe’s leaders must decide if they are playing for keeps.
Brazil, China, India and Russia were once the flavor of the month for investors, but this may be coming to an end as high inflation rates and slowing growth weigh on the respective national economies — and the world’s too.
Worldcrunch EL MUNDO (Spain), LE FIGARO (France) BLOOMBERG (U.S.), MADRID – At the beginning of the week, Spain was supposed to have been saved. So much for that: Moody’s downgraded Spain’s debt rating three steps to Baa3. The main reason for this downgrade “is obviously the need of Spain’s government to ask for external help,” […]
Analysis: Much has been made about China’s move toward a market economy. But seen from up close, the private sector is still a second-class player in the face of state-run economic interests.
A new tax agreement signed with Germany, Britain and Austria has the smaller Swiss banks thinking about “phasing out” customers from these countries, while bigger banks like UBS and Credit Suisse are rubbing their hands with glee.
Worldcrunch THE TIMES OF INDIA, OUTLOOK (India) MUMBAI – Citing slowed growth and stalled reforms, Standard & Poors has warned India that it risks losing its investment-grade rating, and being downgraded to junk category, reports the Times of India. S&P assigned much of the blame to politicians, notably Prime Minister Manmohan Singh. “It would be […]
BLOOMBERG (U.S.), EL MUNDO (Spain) MADRID – European markets got a boost following Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy’s confirmation that Spain received 100 billion euros ($125 billion) from the European Union to rescue a major chunk of its banking sector. The rebound in Monday trading was described as “euphoria” in the Spanish press. According to […]
CHINA TIMES, ECONOMIC OBSERVER (China) BEIJING – “Chinese people should tolerate a certain degree of corruption, because nowhere in the world is any country able to solve this problem completely. The importance is just to limit the corruption so people can tolerate it…” This commentary appeared three days ago in the Global Times, a branch […]
A wind of change is sweeping through Berlin, as Finance Minister Wolfgang Schäuble declares the need for stronger banking cooperation in Europe. Is this the big shift that can save the single currency?
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Look What’s Not Rotten In Denmark
Using the same “toxic” assets that led to the subprime crisis, Denmark has created what they believe to be the best home mortgage system in the world. It’s been 200 years since someone defaulted on payment.
Countless products are manufactured in China and then sold in the West under European or U.S. brand names. A new clothing venture is looking to turn that model inside out, hiring Italian tailors to make top-end suits for sale in China – under a Chinese br
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The Euro Crisis Is Back With A Vengeance
From Greece to Spain To Italy … and back again. The euro zone domino effect takes another spin.
LE MONDE (France) THE GUARDIAN (United Kingdom) PARIS – It may be a sign that the euro zone crisis is reaching a new low when political leaders say out loud what they share behind closed doors. The typically careful managing director of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), Christine Lagarde, has let loose with some plain […]
Who foots the bill if a doctor decides on a treatment option that is not approved for the medical condition in question? Insurers say they’re under no obligation to pay, even if the treatment was effective. And if the doctor’s “off label” choice saves a p
Top economists at Germany’s Deutsche Bank suggest creating a second “parallel” currency, alongside the euro, to save Greece. They also believe Greek banks should be turned into a European-managed “Bad Bank,” a
Department stores executives are realizing that only a smart digital strategy can guarantee a future for them. The necessity of ‘omni-channel’ retailing progressively became obvious for these city-center venerable institutions.
The euro zone’s lingering economic woes and ends to buying restrictions are making Turkey suddenly look like the place to be – especially for Western European retirees. Vacation homes go for as little as 130,000 euros. Pool included.
From the slums of Rio to the city’s wealthiest neighborhood, The Handcraft and Sewing Co-operative of Rocinha has come a long way, catching the eye of fashion gods such as Christian Lacroix and Carlos Miele.
Europe’s economic woes are prompting the Formula One auto racing circuit to seek new markets, including in Latin America, whose export-driven economies are running on all cylinders. Argentina hopes to host a race in 2013, in the seaside resort city o