Macroeconomy & Globalization

Mergers & Acquisitions | Management
Amid the merger frenzy of 2014, a startling number of bids were killed. 2014 may have seen heady times for corporate acquirers, but it was also the year of the rebuffed suitor.

Milestones | Nigeria
A week before it was to take place, Nigeria’s presidential election was postponed for fear it would spark violence. The election was originally scheduled for February 14 but has been pushed back six weeks to March 28. The outcome of this delay is unclear.
 

Capital Markets | Foreign Exchange
Currency pegs around the world are threatening to come unglued following the Swiss National Bank’s surprise move to drop the exchange rate floor of the euro versus the Swiss franc.

Management | Foreign Direct Investment
FDI volumes are declining globally, as some national governments take a stronger stance against foreign ownership of their companies and land.
 

Newsmakers | Greece
Following political party Syriza’s triumph in the recent Greek elections, Finance minister Yanis Varoufakis, faces the most critical match of his career.

Capital Markets | Fixed-Income Strategy
Investors lined up recently to pay for the privilege of lending money to Finland.

Cover Story
The decline in eurozone prices is the most dramatic example of deflationary pressures afflicting the globe. All eyes are now on European Central Bank chief Mario Draghi and his efforts to reverse that trend.

Country Report | Angola
Up until 2013, Angola's GDP, buoyed by booming oil revenues, grew by an average rate of 10.7%, reaching an all-time high of 23.2% in 2007. Now, as economic growth slows and the country’s financial coffers move from surplus to deficit, Angola is rethinking its dependence on “black gold.”

In a presentation in New York on February 18—his first official visit to the US since his appointment—Brazil’s Finance minister Joaquim Levy said that Brazilians are learning by doing.

Market Report | China
The globalization of China’s currency continues at a rapid pace, as regulations ease cash pooling, renminbi trade finance accelerates, and the dim sum bond market goes gangbusters.

Cover Story
As economic growth languishes and worries about the specter of deflation mount, much-needed infrastructure development and new sources of project financing could provide a panacea to global growth.
 

United States | Newsmakers
After the Republican victory in the 2014 US midterm elections and an eight-year hiatus, Richard Shelby, a senior senator from Alabama, has taken over his old post as chairman of the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs.

Cover Story
The drastic drop in oil prices will clearly have an impact on both individual companies and on overall growth in some countries. But is the shift net positive or negative, cyclical or systemic? The ultimate outcome is yet to be seen.

Regulation | Management
In October the OECD’s Base Erosion and Profit Shifting (BEPS) project released a report outlining its progress on a series of steps it was taking to combat tactics—often legal but ethically questionable—used by many multinational companies to reduce or eliminate tax liabilities across their operations. 

Kuwait | Country Report
Kuwait is at a crossroads. Despite huge financial reserves, the Persian Gulf state must speed up project implementation to revive a stagnant economy far too dependent on oil revenues.

Brazil | Newsmakers
Joaquim Levy, Brazil’s newly appointed minister of Finance, will need to muster all his skills to navigate the rough waters of Brazilian domestic politics and restore the public budget surplus that made the country a darling of Wall Street investors.

Lithuania | Milestones
On January 1, Lithuania abandoned the litas, becoming the 19th member of the eurozone and joining Baltic peers Estonia and Latvia in the economic and monetary union.

Taiwan | Milestones
Taiwan’s president Ma Ying-jeou and his Kuomintang party lost control of important political positions in late November, when Taiwanese voters chose opposition party and independent candidates in local elections across the island.

A big question mark is pending on how long the US shale production will remain profitable with declining oil prices.

Sovereign Debt | Capital Markets
Governments in Africa issued a record amount of debt in international markets in 2014, taking advantage of strong investor demand and low borrowing costs ahead of the Federal Reserve’s expected rate increases this year.