Building a bridge from Latin America and Central Europe (Day 2 on the WKO event in Vienna)

Posted on May 15, 2012 by

After a long day of B2B, we deserve a glass of wine. Gathering Argentina, Colombia, Austria and Brazil

The Austrian Chamber of Commerce surely did a nice job in bringing together Latin American and Central European companies. According to Christian Gessl from WKO, on the first day there were 340 people from 37 countries. B2B meetings were intense, with 700 meetings booked.

Christian Gessl, WKO

Why Austria

In past years many Brazilian companies settled in Austria, stimulated by good double tax agreements and of course, the unquestionable Austrian charm, that mingles Germanic pragmatism and Latin sympathy. Among those companies: Brazil Foods, TAM, Banco do Brasil.

Coming soon

WKO promises to invite again Latin American companies to the Danube conference, which will focus on environment and sustainable energy issues.

 

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Bringing together Latin America and Central Europe: takes from day one

Posted on May 15, 2012 by

The idea of bringing together companies from two very different regions is either right and tricky. Right because the Latin American market is large and needy and the Central and Eastern Europe companies have a lot to offer, mainly in the technology related sectors. Tricky for the magnitude of the task. This is day one. Let’s see how it will turn out.

Headquarters of WKO in Vienna

Regulation as Driver of Innovation

Markus Stock stressed the standards for a product to be market in the EU. Safety is a basic requirement. CE marked products are not exclusive of the EU based companies. EU has agreements with the US, Canada and Switzerland but not with any country in LA. If a  LA company wants to sell in EU it needs to be certified by a third party check (NANDO). There are none in LA.

Innovation, the Mexican style

Mr. Antonio Cruz from Mexican Kurago Biotek presented opportunities in the health and food industry in Mexico. He says his product beats Danone, Nestle and Yakult. He has cooperation with universities in Mexico. His company is looking for strategic alliances with CEE.

The day ended with a reception attended by diplomatic authorities of Mexico and Peru. Peruvian food, Corona beer and mariachi music.

My photos of the event are at flirck.

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What is Google up to in Brazil?

Posted on May 4, 2012 by

After visiting the Google office in Tel Aviv, I have recently written a post about what Google is up to in Israel. Google first opened its office in Israel in 2006. I visited two of the four floors used by Google on the 21st and 22nd floors of the famous Levinstein Tower in downtown Tel Aviv. Although not as impressive as the famed Googleplex in Mountain View, California, the offices offer magnificent views of the Mediterranean sea. Each room has its own theme, with walls and furnishings of all colors. There is a meeting room filled with giant legos, a pinball machine, Nintendo Wii, Playstation and other games. There is also a fully equipped music room with guitars, drums, microphones, professional sound system, etc. Add to that a silent room, a 3D printer, and free food at each floor. The feeling of being in a kindergarten almost made me forget that I was in one of the world’s largest multinational companies.

What to know more about Google in Israel? click here.

I know that in April, it was the first time people spent more time on Facebook than on Google in Brazil, according to Experian Hitwise. However, I have not yet visited Google’s office in Brazil. Does anyone know what Google is up to in Brazil?

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Brazilian biggest companies in the Forbes list

Posted on April 20, 2012 by

Forbes list of the world’s biggest companies uses an equal weighting of sales, profits, assets and market value to rank companies according to size.

33 Brazilian companies are in the ranking. Energy makes number one among them with Petrobras (oil, gas and ethanol). Another interesting highlight is the leading presence of banks: Itau (and Itausa, its holding), Bradesco and Banco do Brasil (state controlled).

Fist page of the list:

Rank Company Country Sales Profits Assets Market Value
10 Petrobras-Petróleo BrasilPetrobras-Petróleo Brasil Brazil $145.9 B $20.1 B $319.4 B $180 B
30 Itaú Unibanco Holding

Itaú Unibanco Holding

 Brazil $75.5 B $7.4 B $426.4 B $91.2 B
43 Banco Bradesco

Banco Bradesco

 Brazil $79.8 B $5.9 B $397.1 B $65.3 B
54 Banco do Brasil

Banco do Brasil

 Brazil $72.4 B $6.5 B $516.3 B $45.9 B
56 Vale

Vale

 Brazil $55.4 B $20.3 B $127.6 B $126.8 B
154 Itaúsa

Itaúsa

 Brazil $29.8 B $2.6 B $162.4 B $32.3 B
320 Eletrobrás

Eletrobrás

 Brazil $18 B $1.4 B $86.8 B $14.4 B
536 Companhia Siderurgica

CSN

 Brazil $8.7 B $1.5 B $21.8 B $15.7 B
593 Cemig

Cemig

 Brazil $7.7 B $1.4 B $19.1 B $15 B
601 Tele Norte Leste

Tele Norte Leste

 Brazil $17.8 B $0.9 B $41.9 B $5.8 B
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Latin America is focus of event in Vienna upcoming May (I will be there)

Posted on April 17, 2012 by

The Austrian Federal Economic Chamber is hosting the first international business forum “Latin America meets Central and Eastern Europa in Vienna” . The event’s motto is “Bridging the two worlds through trade and investment” and it will be held in Vienna from 14th to 18th May 2012.

The program will include presentations and discussions on the economies and most important industrial sectors of Latin American and CEE countries.

Companies interested in Brazil. Let’s talk.

For companies interested in exploring the Brazilian market it will be a good opportunity to ask the first questions about how to approach the market. I will be happy to help and I look forward to meeting the Eastern European companies and executives.

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The Economist in Brazilian-American relations

Posted on April 12, 2012 by

Brazilian-American relations

One step at a time

Two American giants are slowly getting to know each other

Apr 14th 2012 | SÃO PAULO | from the print edition

 

Next time over a caipirinha

 

TOASTING their president with a caipirinha, their national cocktail, should soon be a bit cheaper for Brazilians in the United States. During Dilma Rousseff’s visit to Washington, DC, on April 9th, Barack Obama confirmed that his government will recognise cachaça, the sugarcane spirit used to make the drink, as a distinct product—no more calling it “Brazilian rum” and applying tariffs intended to shield the Caribbean kind from competition.

The two leaders also found common ground on weightier matters. Security co-operation will increase: the countries’ defence ministers will meet regularly, an unimaginable prospect only a few years ago. And Brazilians—who spend so much on visits to the United States that the US Travel Association, a lobby group, describes them as “walking stimulus packages”—can now look forward to easier travel planning. The State Department plans to increase consular staff, to speed up visa renewals, and to add another two consulates to its current four by 2014. There was even talk of eliminating visa requirements altogether, though without a timetable.

Ms Rousseff’s visit made clear that the countries’ formal relations are catching up at last with the personal ties they have long enjoyed. Still, there is a way to go. Brazil is the only country whose GDP exceeds $1 trillion that lacks a double-taxation treaty with the United States. It has not wanted to join the 11 Latin American countries with free-trade deals with the world’s biggest economy. Mr Obama has acknowledged Brazil’s aspiration to a permanent seat on the UN Security Council. But he has not endorsed it, as he did India’s in 2010.

One reason for this is that Brazil’s effort to increase its geopolitical sway is fairly recent. “Brazil is used to being overlooked by everyone,” says Matias Spektor of the Fundação Getulio Vargas, a research institute. Many of its budding diplomats, he notes, read a tome entitled “500 Years on the Periphery”. After so long, stepping into the limelight does not come naturally. Brazil’s embassy in Washington is small; few of its firms have offices in the city; and it does not recruit expatriates to lobby on its behalf as India does. Perhaps as a result, American officials seem to know less about Brazil than any other big economy, says Rubens Barbosa, a former Brazilian ambassador in Washington.

A deeper cause of the distance is that American policymakers do not yet trust Brazil fully. Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, Ms Rousseff’s predecessor, vexed them by refusing to criticise Cuba’s human-rights record and undermining their efforts to impose sanctions on Iran over its nuclear programme. During the cold war, Brazil stuck to multilateralism, and could avoid hard choices. “Now Brazil wants to defend its own interests,” says Ricardo Sennes of Prospectiva, a consultancy. “That means first working out what they are.”

Mr Barbosa says Brazil takes seriously the charge that it only criticises and never proposes. The government has taken some small steps towards a more constructive approach. After abstaining in last year’s UN Security Council resolution on military intervention in Libya, Brazil is now trying to draft new safeguards for future humanitarian interventions, calling them “responsibility while protecting”. Nonetheless, the United States will probably keep its guard up until Brazil establishes a clearer record in foreign policy.

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Tourism in Brazil: could it do better?

Posted on March 17, 2012 by

On top of the Corcovado, looking down Sugar Loaf

Brazil is the 39th destination on a ranking for international tourists, according to World Tourism Organization (WTO).  The country received 5.1 million visitors in 2010. A shame if compared to other BRICs: China (81 million), Russia (23.7 million) and India (5.3 million).

So the question – could it do better? – has an easy answer. Huge YES. Now, what is the plan?

An article published this week in Jornal Valor concludes that tourism in Brazil is a profitable activity with great potential for growth. Government invested R $ 29.36 per tourist in 2010 and got R $ 1,282.94 in return. Well, is it profitable or is it a lost opportunity? Shouldn’t Brazil do better in terms of tourism?

Most tourists are Brazilians

Brazil had about 55.1 million tourists in 2010. Only 5.1 million were foreigners. Still foreigners are the ones who spend the most: an  R $ 2,044 on average. Brazilians however, account for only R $ 1203. Considering the international tourism, foreigners spend in South Africa the double they do in Brazil, three times in Russia and 13 times more in China.

Wealthier Brazilians travel more (abroad)

The increase in income in Brazil had a huge impact on the number of trips abroad, according to a study of the Conferação Nacional de Serviços (CNS). In the period of 2004-2010 foreigners expenditure in Brazil grew 84%,while expenses of Brazilians abroad rose 471%. The deficit in 2010 was $ 10.5 billion.

Benchmarks

Foreign tourists brought around U.S. $ 5.8 billion to Brazil while the U.S. totaled U.S. $ 166 billion in revenue, followed by China (U.S. $ 81 billion), Spain (U.S. $ 70 billion) and France (U.S. $ 68 billion). Also appearing ahead of Brazil are Thailand (U.S. $ 22 billion), Mexico ($ 15 billion) and Portugal ($ 14 billion).

Public investment is target of critics.

Money is spent without prioritizing the main destinations. Sergipe, for example, received $ 80 million of public funds for tourism in 2010 – behind only Ceara, Pernambuco, Bahia and Sao Paulo – but the state does not correspond in attracting tourists.

Luigi Nese, president of CNS, believes that a good strategy for the country attract more foreign tourism, would be to concentrate investment in poles of great attraction. ”Money is not necessarily poorly managed, but we sprayed the few resources we have for the entire country, rather than focusing on 15 cities with great potential for tourism and good infrastructure.”

The Ministry of Tourism agrees.

According to the executive secretary, Simon Valdir, the government prepares a plan for projects aligned with the National Tourism Plan. ”We organize a database of projects that are strategic to the tourism in Brazil and 65 that focus on key destinations, including all state capitals.”

The parlement finger on tourism budget

Brazilian congress

Two-thirds of federal funds intended for tourism are allocated through parliamentary amendments. The government’s intention is to support projects that receive public money and coordinate them with initiatives made abroad. ”We want to know the expectations of the tourist source countries to try to customize our services and attractive that audience,” says Simon.

The most expensive hotels in the world

In front of Copacabana Palace Hotel

Hoteis.com Site Survey, which operates in the lodging reservations, indicates that in the last year compared to 2010, the city of Rio was the destination with the highest price in the world in five star hotels, with a average tariff of U.S. $ 1,178 per night. (O Globo)
Enrico Torquato, president of the Brazilian Association of Hotels (Abih), explains that several factors contribute to the tariff sector is expensive and uncompetitive with other international destinations. ”The tax burden slay our hotel network.

Expensive air tickets and deficient airports

The second major deficiency indicated by the study of CNS in the promotion of international tourism in Brazil is the price of airline tickets. The sector, however, says it has reduced the margin, but you need to pass on increased fuel prices. Over the past two years, the price of kerosene increased by 51.64%.

Congonhas airport in São Paulo is one of the busiest in the country

“The airport infrastructure also does not absorb the demand,” says Jorge Onorio, from the National Union of Air Companies (SNEA). ”When the aircrafts are waiting for space on the gangplank, they are consuming fuel with the engine running. This is another reason for the cost increase.”

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