09/24/2008 15h48
Brazil will be the main investment destination of AL in 2008
Folha de S. Paulo - 09/24/2008
In a moment of world economic slowdown, Brazil should be the main destination of investments of Latin-American companies in 2009, according to a survey by KPMG consulting company that was published yesterday. From 140 multinational executives of the region, 21% declared the intention of investing in the country next year. In the sequence, there are the United States and Argentina, both with 19% of the intentions. In the context of a weak economic performance in the developed countries, the investors are turning their attention to the emerging ones. And, in Brazil's case, access to a growing consumer market and greater political stability appear as the main attractions, affirms Diogo Ruiz, partner in charge of the Tax Practices of KPMG in Brazil. Although there is consensus that there will be a period, at least until next year, of shortage of external credit offer and low in investments, Brazil appears as an alternative to business groups that still have greater liquidity and are ready to invest. "It is possible to have some downscaling, but, either way, there will always be the need for investments. With the crises abroad and the grade of investment in Brazil, there is a natural channeling of funds here", affirms Ruiz. Brazil will be in advantage in comparison with other countries, which does not mean that the investments of capital in the country will be bigger. On the contrary, the forecast is that there should be a fall of the direct foreign investment. According to RC Consultores, the volume of foreign capital in Brazil should reach US$ 38 billion in 2008. For the next year, the amount should fall to something between US$ 25 billion and US$ 28 billion. "It means that the crisis appears as a relative opportunity to Brazil. This is not an expansionist setting", affirms Fábio Silveira, managing partner of RC. KPMG's survey also shows that the intention of investments in Brazil will be smaller. In a five-year horizon, the interest in investing in the country falls from 21% to 19%. According to Ruiz, the fact that the companies will already be consolidated in Brazil in 2013 explains the decrease.
