GlobalSource Partners | Country Insights

As mentioned in our previous reports, 2022 is a critical year for SA’s democratic political evolution. The governing party, The African National Congress (ANC), is heading for its all-important December 2022 National Elective Congress at which the Party’s new leadership structures and its “presid...

Political climate to heat up and other weekly topics

BRAZIL POLITICS · Report · 15 Aug 2022

The election campaign begins. Online advertising, marches and rallies will be allowed. On Tuesday, August 16, Minister Alexandre de Moraes assumes the presidency of the Superior Electoral Court (TSE). On August 18, three blocks of 15 airports in the North, Southeast and Midwest regions will be au...

Stabilizing inertia is weakening

VENEZUELA · Report · 15 Aug 2022

The anti-inflationary policy based on containing bolivar depreciation yielded modest results in July. Inflation slowed down to 7.0 percent from 9.5 percent in June, while the bolivar depreciated in nominal terms against the dollar by only 2.6 percent after having done so by 9.3 percent the month ...

Economics: Pemex continues to catch a break but may have squandered the chance to profitably apply the price-fueled windfall

MEXICO · Report · 15 Aug 2022

In keeping with the general tenor of the company’s first quarter report, Pemex’s April-June performance continued to greatly benefit from the market conditions that have sent crude and gas prices sharply higher. The company’s second quarter results showed added momentum on numerous upstream and d...

Rebels to rubles

TURKEY · Report · 15 Aug 2022 · 1 response

It is useful to watch the time-travel spy thriller “Tenet” (link here) before reading this brief note. Like in that controversial movie, the action in this essay moves from front to back and side-to-side. That is, it jumps from Erdogan’s new initiative to reach out to Syrian President Assad t...

Shekel appreciation continues and is expected to moderate tightening

ISRAEL · Report · 15 Aug 2022

* Rapid shekel appreciation continued last week, reducing our inflation forecast as well as our rate forecast. * Economic indicators remain generally positive, especially the business sector survey (including high-tech). * We expect July’s CPI to reach 0.7% m/m (4.7% y/y) on higher food,...

S&P rating action, Guardian on local courts, construction industry and the strong dollar: the forint is under some pressure again

HUNGARY · In Brief · 15 Aug 2022

The forint is still trading on the strong side of the important EURHUF 400 line, which is great, but it has come under some pressure this morning. Besides today's strong dollar, which is normally negative for the Hungarian currency, there are some domestic factors behind this as well. First, S&P ...

Shekel appreciation continues and is expected to moderate monetary tightening

ISRAEL · In Brief · 14 Aug 2022

Consumers are pessimistic but the business sector sees growth ahead: The CBS consumer index declined in July to the lowest level since October 2020 (Covid lockdown), especially the forward-looking components. The Business Sector Tendency Survey points to steady growth and expectations of further ...

Russian macro: balance of payments undergoing radical change

RUSSIA ECONOMICS · Report · 12 Aug 2022

As the group of “unfriendly” countries is working hard to prepare the mechanism that could impose a price cap on Russian oil exports and is trying to convince other countries to join their club, it is worth looking at Russia’s balance of payments and consider its possible evolution. It looks as t...

Latvia declares Russia a ''state sponsor of terrorism''

CIS POLITICS · In Brief · 12 Aug 2022

On August 11 the Latvian Parliament passed a motion saying Russia had committed genocide in Ukraine. No one voted against the motion. Ukraine applauded the move. Russia denounced this as xenophobia and accused those who passed the motion of being neo-Nazis. Latvia noted that Russia often uses cl...

The event in defense of democracy was held at USP yesterday, next week the electoral campaigns begin, and Minister Alexandre de Moraes takes over as the president of the TSE

BRAZIL POLITICS · Report · 12 Aug 2022

The event had wide coverage in the press. Representatives of social movements that participated in the event took advantage of the opportunity and strongly criticized the government of President Jair Bolsonaro. On Tuesday, August 16, the election campaign begins. Candidates can begin asking for v...

Inflation continues rising

ARGENTINA · In Brief · 11 Aug 2022

Although roughly speaking in line with market expectations, bearing in mind the sharp depreciation of the informal FX rate following Martín Guzman´s resignation, July’s 7.4% m/m CPI inflation remains nevertheless a worrisome measurement of the “fever” that the economy suffers due to its significa...

Avoiding economic crisis amid political litmus tests

DOMINICAN REPUBLIC · Report · 11 Aug 2022

Amid an increasingly restrictive monetary policy and increases in widespread subsidies, economic growth (5.6%) and inflation (9.5%) in H1 2022 maintained momentum compared to H1 2021. This was also true when compared with January-May 2022. Economic growth has been mainly associated with the stron...

Central Asia military drills take place without Russia

CIS POLITICS · In Brief · 11 Aug 2022

On August 10 Mongolia, Pakistan, the US, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan began their military exercises in Tajikistan. The US is sponsoring it. The exercise is called Regional Cooperation 22. Washington DC has hailed this as an excellent example of its cooperation with the regio...

Russia: a brief market watch

RUSSIA ECONOMICS · In Brief · 11 Aug 2022

The Russian monetary authorities continue to discourage local clients from keeping funds in unfriendly currencies in the domestic financial system. Last week the Russian President signed a decree that allows sanctioned banks to freeze accounts of legal entities nominated in the currency of those ...