Weekend news

From the Economist: "Power and the Xingu. A huge Amazon hydropower project shows how hard it is to balance the demands of the environment and of a growing and prospering country." Due to Brazil's growth, the country has a serious need for more energy. A proposed US$11 billion dam in the Amazon has attracted international attention -- even Avatar director James Cameron was present during protests.

From Reuters: Toyota has agreed to recall all Corollas in Brazil manufactured since 2008. The article states that "calls made to the Sao Paulo-based offices of Toyota on Saturday were not answered." Really? On a Saturday? So strange. They should try calling on Sunday.

From Portal Exame: The size of supermarkets in Brazil is shrinking. The article cites several factors, including consumer preference for shopping close to home,the stability of the Real allowing for more frequent trips and smaller purchases, and the fact that the Brazilian population is getting older and doesn't want to walk up and down long supermarket aisles.

From Businessweek:  The Brazilian central bank promises "vigorous" action to keep the economy from overheating. Base interest rates are expected to rise this week from the current record low of 8.75%. Central bank president Henrique Meirelles states that “Brazil’s challenge in the next 12 months is to keep inflation in line with targets." Well, that should be easy enough. Quit expanding the money supply. Somehow I bet that idea won't make the discussions.

* Thursday's post about a potential bubble generated a lot of email, mainly from Brazilians upset that I was doing a "disservice" to the country by speaking my opinion about touchy political subjects, such as the political background of Lula's hand-picked presidential candidate Dilma Rousseff. However, this blog was not created with the idea of making it seem that every investment in Brazil will magically create millionaires and  have yearly returns of 400%. If you disagree with something, you are welcome to leave your opinion as a comment.

Weekend bullets

• The Folha Online reports that Apple wants to manufacturer the iPhone, the MacBook, and possibly the iPod in Brazil. The objective would be to lower costs and increase sales of the devices. Brazil's import duties on electronics are among the highest in the world, causing hoards of Brazilians to load up their bags with iPods on regular trips to Florida and New York.

• An American journalist living in Sao Paulo, Seth Kugel, wrote an article in the GlobalPost where he wonders if Brazil is Iran's best friend in the West. Recent events tend to indicate that Brazil, indeed, has become somewhat cozy with the controversial nation, from President Lula urging the US to hold back sanctions against Iran, to Brazilian politicians and business leaders making field trips to Tehran.

• My buddy Mike sent me an article from the Economist that details the fight for Rio de Janeiro's oil revenues. It appears that most of the states feel that the money should be shared equally, while Rio depends on it to keep their fantastic, high quality public services.

• Brasil Econômico writes of an upscale Brazilian beer, called Xingu, that plans to expand internationally. The beer's creator, Cesario Mello Franco, sold the brand to Kaiser in 2001 but maintained the international distribution rights himself. Now that Kaiser has been acquired by Heineken, he sees a fantastic opportunity and a big paycheck ahead of him if he is able to convince the Dutch company to take it global.