October 2015

Central bank heads were once a predictable and conservative lot. Now they’re swooping in, buying huge amounts of securities and rolling out unorthodox policies to avert danger.

More than a decade ago, the Fed tried to pump life into the faltering US economy. In 2008, the financial markets crashed. There is a connection.

What’s irking central bankers is not that they have bought too many stocks or bonds. Rather, it’s that they haven’t bought enough.

Global Finance unveils its annual list of the best banks globally, regionally and by country. The winners have provided the best service to clients.

Neil Shearing, chief emerging markets economist at Capital Economics, visited Global Finance on September 10, just as Standard & Poor’s cut Brazil’s public debt to junk level. We asked him about the outlook for that country and other emerging markets.

The real question for Africa now is not so much about past economic performance but about what’s coming next.

No region of the world has generated an average annual growth rate of 5.5% over the past 20 years—except Africa. In sub-Saharan Africa, GDP has expanded by 40% since 2009.

As Africa improves transport and telecommunications links, it’s creating countless opportunities for foreign direct investment.    

Emerging nations are replacing the Americas as the continent’s largest trading partners.         

African Gems | Alexandria Container and Cargo tops Global Finance’s first annual ranking of the 25 Best-Performing Companies in Africa.     

African nations can no longer get by on mineral wealth and commodities alone—and they know it.

Global Finance’s First Annual List Of Who’s Who In African Finance.

Country Report | Turkey is roiled by political uncertainty and slowing growth ahead of November elections.

Short-term risks have not dimmed the country’s economic prospects. That may explain why FDI from Asia and Gulf nations is surging.

Saudi Arabia needs a strategy to diversify its oil-based economy. Can change come fast enough?

With the country’s oil revenue set to slide by about 30% this year, privatization is a largely untapped resource.

Arabia is meeting with some success in its efforts to entice foreign investors to six new economic cities in the kingdom.

Guatemala’s political turmoil, with parties deadlocked in Parliament, a runoff election looming and corruption scandals exploding, means the government will operate in a kind of suspended animation until 2016.

The Indian government headed by prime minister Narendra Modi is betting big on the reform and revamp of state-run banks over the next four years to support the country’s 8%-plus GDP growth.

Eni, the Italian energy company that was unsuccessful in finding exploitable hydrocarbons in Cyprus, now has a major find on its hands elsewhere.

“An economic windfall.” That’s how the World Bank’s chief economist for the Middle East and North Africa, Shantayanan Devarajan, characterized the boost to the Iranian economy from the lifting of sanctions in the wake of the nuclear deal struck with the permanent members of the UN Security Council.

Newsmakers | US
In the United States, a real estate developer turned politician is stealing the thunder of many more-seasoned statesmen.

Newsmakers | China
At the beginning of September, the fledgling Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank took an important step forward with the appointment of its first president.
 

Newsmakers | Japan
Despite a less-than-stellar performance at the helm of the country, Japanese prime minister Shinzō Abe was reelected in September to a second three-year term as the president of his Liberal Democratic Party.

Newsmakers | United Nations
When the United Nations Global Compact was launched 15 years ago at the New York Stock Exchange, Lise Kingo was entrenched on the corporate responsibility frontline in Europe.
 

Winterkorn is forced to resign after it was revealed the company was guilty of manipulating diesel emission tests.

Fixed Income | With this summer’s Greek debt crisis having abated somewhat and the European Central Bank (ECB) considering expanding its easy-money policies, US companies are rushing to the eurozone to issue debt at record-low interest rates.

Executive Pay | Since the global financial crisis of 2008, corporate boards have been under pressure to tie executive pay to performance.

Capital Outflows | The meltdown in China’s stock market this summer and steep falls in many emerging markets currencies led some investors to wonder if another 1997 Asian crisis was brewing.

Executive Management | In light of a shareholders’ vote on September 22 as to whether Bank of America chief executive officer Brian Moynihan should remain chairman as well, the debate about whether the two roles should be separate rages on in the United States.

Commodities | Oil prices have only slightly recovered from a new record low set at the end of August. But they are still 60% below their peak of 2014, which is putting pressure on US oil companies, with many pundits predicting a rapid overhaul of the industry.

Mergers & Acquisitions | Slowing growth and severe stock market falls have raised fears that China is nearing some sort of crossroads. Some economists believe that, owing to tight central controls, Chinese corporations won’t hit their expected growth targets.

FX Reserves | China’s foreign exchange reserves plunged by nearly $94 billion in August, the most ever in a single month, as the People’s Bank of China (PBoC) struggled to support the renminbi after devaluing the currency by 1.9%.

Card Processing | The United States is slowly catching up to the rest of the world in transaction processing, shifting from mag-stripe to more secure EMV payment cards.

IMF/World Bank 2015 Annual Meetings
The Chairman for the State Bank of India, discusses the Indian marketplace, the role of the Indian Central Bank and her assessment of the status of emerging markets.

IMF/World Bank 2015 Annual Meetings
The VP & Head of Financial Markets of Lloyds, discusses the business climate in the UK and what the IMF/World Bank Annual meetings mean for his organization.

IMF/World Bank 2015 Annual Meetings
The Executive Director of KfW, gives his assessment of the world economy, the outlook for Europe and for Germany in particular.

IMF/World Bank 2015 Annual Meetings
The Executive Vice President of Itau BBA discusses the economic climate in Latin America and how his organization is meeting the challenges it faces in a volatile marketplace.

IMF/World Bank 2015 Annual Meetings
The Governor of the Central Bank of Paraguay, discusses economic conditions in Paraguay and the role of the state in creating the basis for the private sector to thrive.

IMF/World Bank 2015 Annual Meetings
The Governor of the Central Bank of The Philippines, discusses the state of the Philippine economy and its resilience in the face of challenges facing emerging markets.