Latin America’s billionaires beat all world records
Here it is, in cold numbers. The 87-page report, titled “Wealth-X and UBS Billionaire Census 2014,” says the billionaire population in Latin America and the Caribbean grew by a whopping 38 percent this year, compared with only 18 percent in Asia, 10 percent in the United States and 1 percent in Europe. The report says there are currently 153 billionaires in Latin America and the Caribbean, up from 111 last year. Interestingly, economically bankrupt Venezuela was the country with the biggest billionaire…
Should Latin America set aside outdated ideological prejudices, and insert itself in the global knowledge economy ?
Economists have been predicting for several months that Latin America will have a so-so year in 2015, but new projections from the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund suggest that it may be worse than originally expected. That’s bad news, because economic forecasts from the World Bank and the IMF — and even to a greater extent those from the United Nations Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC) — tend to be much more optimistic than those of leading private economists.…
2015 Global food & agriculture investment outlook including South America
2015 Global food & agriculture investment outlook including South America We are glad to share with you the 2015 Global food & agriculture investment outlook, published by Valoral Advisors. As the asset class goes institutional, they look at the new investors that are joining the space and the implications for asset managers.The growing allocations by family offices, pension funds and sovereign funds coincide with an increased M&A appetite by corporate ventures and trading houses. Besides bringing…
Argentina’s Once Vibrant Wine Industry Is On The Verge Of Collapse
Argentina’s Once Vibrant Wine Industry Is On The Verge Of Collapse In the city of Mendoza, the continent’s wine capital, a group consisting of over 5,000 growers, winemakers, and vineyard employees packed the city streets with tractors, poured wine on the steps of city hall, and chanted and waved signs with the aim of stopping the annual Fiesta de la Vendimia. The Fiesta de la Vendimia is the harvest festival, a world-renowned highly attended event. It attracts global attention, spendy tourists, and…
Residential Rents in Buenos Aires are soaring as landlords seek to stay ahead of inflation
Residential Rents in Buenos Aires Renting a house or an apartment this year will be between 25% and 30% more expensive. Locate experts and real estate brokers estate agree that the determining factor is inflation. “Rents increased between November 2013 and March 2014, 28.5 percent; so today, if new residential rents are line with this trend continues, the increases for 2015 will could well exceed 30 percent with semiannual adjustments of 15 percent plus. Besides inflation, Germán Gómez Picasso, co-founder…
Has a financially desperate Argentina sold its soul to China ?
Experts warn preliminary agreement violates local legislation by including a clause transfer Chinese manpower for infrastructure works An investment and infrastructure works deal with China that passed the Argentine Senate in the embers of last year overrides local laws, is shrouded in secrecy, fosters lack of transparency, and will have a high economic cost for beleaguered financially desperate Argentina, international relations pundits say, echoing concerns vented by the opposition. Among the main criticism,…
Argentina in Top 5 of World’s Best Places to Buy or Retire in 2015
Argentina in Top 5 of World’s Best Places to Buy or Retire in 2015 Everyone who is interested in buying international real estate loves to take advantage of a market in crisis. According to world renowned publisher, Kathleen Peddicord of Live and Invest Overseas, Argentina tops the list for countries where buyers can benefit from the strong dollar. She claims “this is where you could get a great deal on a second home in the sun, a holiday escape that you could rent out when you’re…
Argentines have best level of English in Latin America
Anyone over 50 years can attest to the fact that learning a new language is hard work. All the more if you are an Anglo male. However, the good news is that Argentines women in particular are by far the most articulate English speakers. English is extremely popular in Argentina. It is so popular, in fact, that the country stands heads and shoulders above the region. Argentines are the most proficient in English in Latin America, and it isn’t even close, achieving high proficiency in the language in a region…
5 Reasons You Will Not Succeed Selling Real Estate in any country
Unless you are fully committed to real estate as a profession and have a solid business plan, you will have trouble finding success anywhere. Here I have outlined five situations that can bring down your career — and how to avoid them. Over the past twenty five years, I have had the opportunity to train and work with some of the world’s greatest real estate professionals. This experience has allowed me to witness first-hand not only the success stories but also sight more unfulfilled potential than…
How does the market crash in oil prices affect South American agriculture
How does the market crash in oil prices affect South American agriculture I have been trying to get my head around the medium to long-term effects of lower oil prices on agriculture. Who would have thought only six months ago we would have oil prices sub-USD 57 dollars per barrel. Now it seems this could last one year or more, which means it will affect the total food and distribution chain. Many companies will try and resist a lowering of consumer prices but in a globalized world this will only work for a…
What has happened the the Chinese luxury wine market ?
What has happened the the Chinese luxury wine market ? As China’s anticorruption campaign dampens demand for expensive wines, the red obsession with Bordeaux vineyards is starting to evaporate. Chinese were the biggest buyers of Bordeaux vineyards in 2013 with 25 deals, or 75% of the total number of transactions. They bought over 900 hectares, or 2,223 acres, in total, accounting for 20% of the land that changed hands in Bordeaux last year, according to Vineyard Intelligence, which tracks vineyard purchases.…
KMPG’S Indirect Tax Guide to South America
KMPG’S Indirect Tax Guide to South America has been updated Here is a very informative indirect tax guide to doing Real Estate business in Latin America done by KMPG. Always seek to quantify and qualify if there have been any recent changes. ( believe me, there will have been ) About Gateway to South AmericaGateway to South America is an independent Brokerage and Advisory company committed to helping foreign investors to invest in Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Paraguay, Peru and Uruguay. ShareShareTweetWhatsAppEmail
How To Obtain Residency and Citizenship in Uruguay
Figures released by the Uruguayan Immigration Office show that in 2012 over 5000 applications were filed for residence, but at the same time only 2400 applications were granted. This goes a long way to explaining why the time taken to obtain residence in Uruguay has shot up from 6 months only 2-3 years ago to around 24 months now. Since 2008 the number of applications filed has increased from just over 2000 to over 5000 i.e. 150 %. At the same time the number of employees assigned to residency applications…
In Chile, Indigenous Groups Push Back developments slowing growth
Negotiations with Indigenous Groups as well as mounting environmental awareness by the general public have slowed or blocked more than $20 billion US in power stations, gold and copper mines, and transmission lines, according to company statements and a study by Matias Abogabir, head of indigenous affairs during former President Sebastián Piñera’s administration.(Abogabir now advises companies on indigenous relations.) After a decade-long copper boom that made Chile the richest country in Latin America,…
Economic Snapshot of Latin America
(This article was written by Focus Economics and was published on December 9, 2014) Economic Snapshot of Latin America More complete data showed that growth in most Latin American economies bottomed out in the second quarter and that it is picking up slowly in the second half of the year. In the third quarter, the regional GDP estimate (excluding Venezuela which hasn’t yet published GDP figures for 2014) showed that the economy grew 0.7% year-on-year, which came in slightly above the 0.6% expansion observed…
