Emerging Markets

COMPANY TO WATCH: TURK TELEKOM/TURKEY Türk Telekom, the country’s former fixed-line phone monopoly, is expanding rapidly into mobile phone and Internet services. The company has 5 million broadband Internet customers and expects that total to reach 9 million by the ...

In our cover story this month we investigate the surge in investment pouring into Africa. Resource-poor, cash-rich nations such as India and China are seemingly leaving no stones unturned in their rush to secure supplies...

ARGENTINA   Fernandez: His appointment unsettled financial markets. As he slips into the seat occupied by four others in less than a year, Argentina’s new economy minister, Carlos Fernandez, faces the unenviable task of restoring confidence in his government’s economic ...

RUSSIA     New president, old habits: Russia's overt display of military strength. Dmitry Medvedev was sworn in as president of Russia on May 7—and, according to plan, the next day former president Vladimir Putin became prime minister. The new ...

AFRICA     Kaberuka: Cereal export limits imperil 150 million Africans' lives. Food shortages continue to cause severe disruption in many African countries, prompting the African Development Bank (AfDB) to pledge up to $1 billion in subsidies and grants to ...

COUNTRY REPORT / NIGERIA Despite vast hydrocarbon reserves and a government committed to economic diversification, Nigeria still faces tremendous problems. A resurgence in its banking sector may help accelerate future progress.   Oil is Nigeria’s lifeline, accounting for some 80% ...

CHINA     China's president Hu Jintao aims to improve relations with Japan.   Rescue workers on May 14 reached southwestern China’s Weixian county, the epicenter of an earthquake that shook cities across Asia and damaged 70% to 80% of ...

SECTOR REPORT / ISLAMIC FINANCE The range of Islamic finance techniques is growing rapidly, but some are concerned that the most innovative products may be flouting shariah principles.   While conventional financial markets are still reeling from the credit crunch, ...

AFRICA   Long ignored by mainstream investors and corporations, Africa has suddenly found itself in the spotlight. Its resilience in the recent credit crunch is just part of the reason.     An oil worker stands on the deck of ...

NEWS     London-based Focus Capital last month introduced a hedge fund that aims to achieve absolute returns from emerging markets irrespective of market conditions by investing in multiple asset classes. The Emerging World Fund diversifies risk by using a ...

BRAZIL     Mantega: Central bank reserves will not be used for wealth fund. After years of speculation over when and if Brazil would achieve a coveted investment-grade rating, the move finally caught almost everyone by surprise. Standard & Poor’s ...

DR NEWS   Depa, a Dubai-based provider of interior contracting services, selected Deutsche Bank as depositary institution for its global depositary receipt program. The company raised $432 million in the form of shares and GDRs, including the granting of an ...

ANNUAL REPORT / STARS OF THE NEW RUSSIA   Making the most of their newfound spending power, Russia’s consumers are boosting the fortunes of the country’s banks and corporations.   With Russia’s economy fueled by petrodollars, Russian consumers are on ...

INDIA     India's construction industry promises rich returns. Bharti Airtel, India’s largest wireless company, with 62 million subscribers, is in talks with MTN of South Africa to acquire between 51% and 100% of that company. The deal could potentially ...

CENTRAL & EASTERN EUROPE Despite continuing political upheaval, many countries in Central and Eastern Europe are more concerned about reining in their buoyant economies than surviving the global economic downturn.     Although the politics in Warsaw may be "noisy," ...

Just as the financial world was breathing a sigh of relief amid signs that the worst of the credit crunch was over, another, potentially more serious, crisis has emerged...

MIDDLE EAST     GCC monetary leaders are pressing ahead with plans for a single currency, despite pressures to revalue. Central bank governors from the six member states of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) gathered in Doha, Qatar, in April ...

OIL PRODUCER PLANS TO BE BIG SPENDER     Ecopetrol, Colombia’s state-owned oil company, says it hopes to list its shares on the New York Stock Exchange later this year, following a further privatization to help finance an aggressive spending ...

CHINA     Pro-Tibetan protests have dogged the run-up to the Beijing Olympics. China upwardly revised its 2006 and 2007 gross domestic product (GDP) growth numbers, pushing the country closer to surpassing Germany to become the world’s third-largest economy. According ...

COUNTRY REPORT: THE PHILIPPINES The Philippines seems to be avoiding the worst of the global market slowdown, but there have been a few hiccups along the way.   The financial Makati district in Manila is not feeling the pinch of ...