Univision News

Hugo Chávez will head back to Cuba for surgery to remove new tumors, igniting doubts about his chances of winning re-election in October. Reports suggest Venezuela is also supplying fuel to Syria’s embattled regime (Photo: facebook)

By STEPHEN KEPPEL
Channel: Economics

What we are reading this week
***In this week’s rundown of top stories we take a closer look at rethinking US-LatAm relations and spotlight the “Currency War” which is picking up again. Also…the iPhone drought in Argentina, Chávez’s latest cancer scare, Venezuela and Syria, Latinos to pick the next US President, Mexican tycoons to fight it out?, Appia and America Movil brings Apps to LatAm, US-Mex reach landmark deal, Walmex profits jump in Q4, Obama talks to Univision, Cash-rich Latin Americans boost Miami and are Puerto Ricans immigrants?

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SOUTH AMERICA

iPhone drought continues in Argentina – apparently to to get an iPhone in Argentina “you have to buy it on your first trip to Miami.” Argentines face another year of scrounging for hard-to-get iPhones as the government continues to block imports of the world’s most popular smartphone. The government doesn’t formally ban iPhones, but it has made it clear to mobile phone makers that they can’t sell their products here unless they produce them in Argentina. While companies such as Research In Motion Ltd. have partnered with local manufacturers to assemble phones, it wouldn’t make sense for  Apple to do so…via The Wall Street Journal

Chávez cancer scare stokes uncertainty – What happens if he can’t run? Venezuelan president Hugo Chávez, who earlier this week said he would return to Cuba for surgery, has admitted that the newly discovered lesion in his pelvis is likely to be cancerous, further heightening political uncertainty ahead of October’s presidential elections. Speaking on state television late on Tuesday, Mr Chávez, 57, who until this week had insisted he was “fully recovered” from cancer that was first diagnosed last year, said: “No one can say … if this new lesion is malignant. However, there is a high probability that it is”…via The Financial Times

As others isolate Syria, Chávez ships fuel to it – Always the contrarian. William Neuman writes “A day before the United Nations General Assembly voted overwhelmingly to condemn President Bashar al-Assad of Syria this month for his bloody crackdown on the uprising in his country, President Hugo Chávez of Venezuela was conducting a very different kind of diplomacy on his own. A ship owned by the Venezuelan state oil company sailed into the Syrian port of Baniyas, its location captured by a satellite system that tracks ship movements. The ship, making its second trip to Baniyas since December, appeared to be carrying fuel to help prop up the embattled Mr. Assad”…via The New York Times

Spotlight on the “Currency War”:

Colombia’s response to currency war – Juan Manuel Santos, president of Colombia, tweeted a request to state oil group Ecopetrol on Wednesday, asking it to delay paying the government about $6bn in dividends. Why? Jonathan Wheatley writes “The fast-appreciating peso is threatening exports and jobs.  Ecopetrol has proposed paying 300 pesos a share in three installments this year. Given the government’s 88.5 per cent holding of its 40.5bn shares, that means it would get 10.7tr pesos ($6.02bn), a large chunk of which would have to be brought into the country from Ecopetrol’s export earnings. Santos said Ecopetrol should pay minority shareholders as planned but that the government could wait until next year”…via Beyond Brics

Brazilian Finance Minister says Global Currency War is intensifying – But Brazil is “well prepared”. “Global economic growth in 2012 will be below that of 2011,” Finance Minister Guido Mantega said ahead of his participation at a meeting of finance and monetary officials from the Group of 20 nations this weekend in Mexico City. “One of the results of the slowdown is that the global currency war is intensifying.”  As developed economies have aggressively eased monetary policies in a bid to revive their sputtering economies, their currencies have weakened. That, in turn, has made their exports more competitive and has prompted investors to move money into higher-yielding assets—in many cases in emerging markets such as Brazil, where economic growth and base interest rates are considerably higher. The Brazilian real in recent days, has appreciated to about 1.70 real to the dollar, a 9% gain so far in 2012. The stronger real hurts Brazilian exporters and manufacturers. According to Mr. Mantega Brazil’s government has “a large arsenal of instruments” that it will use “to prevent an excessive appreciation of the Brazilian currency”…via The Wall Street Journal

Spotlight on foreign policy:

Rethinking relations with Latin America – Is it time to press the re-set button on US-LatAm relations?? Christopher Sabatina writes “Running down the list of the U.S. State Department’s Latin America policy objectives in El País in September 2010, the economist Moisés Naím noted that they focused almost exclusively on domestic concerns: building democratic institutions, promoting local social and economic opportunity, and so forth. These issues were not only given a higher priority in policy toward Latin America than they were for other regions, but they were also issues largely beyond Washington’s ability to control. Naím was correct, but the point can be taken further. The focus on politics within Latin American states rather than on relations between them is characteristic not simply of the State Department but also of the Latin American regional studies community in the United States more generally, from where the U.S. policy and advocacy community absorbs much of its personnel and intellectual orientation. Such attitudes have harmed U.S. policy by focusing excessive attention on small countries with little geostrategic influence and fostering the facile notion that political and economic liberalization are the necessary and sufficient criteria for the advancement of all major U.S. interests”…via Foreign Affairs

Joe Biden to head to Mexico and Honduras - Vice President Joe Biden will make a three-day visit to Mexico and Honduras during the first week of March, the White House announced on Wednesday. In Mexico, Biden plans to meet with President Felipe Calderon. For the moment, the White House is only providing diplomatic jargon, saying that Biden will “underscore the United Sates’ commitment to deepening our close dialogue and cooperation with Mexico on a broad range of issues.” After going to Mexico, Biden will travel to the Honduran capital of Tegucigalpa, where he will hold a one-on-one meeting with President Porfirio Lobo and also participate in a broader meeting of Central American presidents. Will they ask Biden for his views on the drug war? via Univision News

Top Tweets: #Chavez

@JebBush: Where is the mainstream media in its coverage of the repressive and hateful #Chavez regime? http://ow.ly/9fYFt

@UnivisionNews: Chavez surgery casts an electoral shadow http://uninews.us/zrBIU1 #Chavez #Venezuela

@Cocando: RT @aroliveros: Barclays: “We can not discount possibility of #Chavez starting to announce (on) a possible transition sooner than later”

@Jorgeramosnews: #Chavez anuncia q sera operado la proxima semana en Cuba. La asamblea le da permiso para ausentarse indefinidamente y no pone sustituto

NORTH and CENTRAL AMERICA

Time Cover: Latinos could pick the next US President – Jordan Fabian writes “Politicians, you’ve been warned. The latest cover of Time magazine proclaims ‘Yo Decido. Why Latinos will pick the next president.’ The magazine’s analysis uses the most recent Univision News/ABC News/Latino Decision poll as evidence that Democrats so far have the upper hand over Republicans when it comes to winning over Latinos”…via Univision News

It is time for Mexico to let its tycoons fight it out – says The Financial Times. “It does not take long for a visitor to Mexico to realise competition is not bienvenida there. When he stops to refill his car, he buys his fuel from Pemex, Mexico’s state-owned oil monopoly. The beer he drinks with his fajita is normally made either by Grupo Modelo or Cuauhtémoc Moctezuma, the country’s dominant breweries. This state of affairs has been very welcome for some. Carlos Slim’s near-monopoly in both the fixed and mobile telecoms sectors has made him the wealthiest man in the world. His fortune is estimated at $63bn. His companies account for more than a third of Mexico’s stock market. Two other oligopolistic giants, Azteca and Televisa, who share Mexico’s free-to-air television market, are seeking joint control of Iusacell, a small wireless operator. Although the regulator has so far blocked the agreement, concessions by the two groups may still allow it to take place. In allowing two powerful companies to enter Mr Slim’s turf, the regulator would inject some much-needed competitive pressures into one of Mexico’s swampiest near-monopolies”…via The Financial Times

Mexico is willing to be drug legalization – Mexican Foreign Minister Patricia Espinosa said on Wednesday that Mexico is willing to debate the legalization of drugs. Although she argued that this was not the best way forward. Manuel Rueda writes “Mexico’s Foreign Minister told a group of Latin American and European lawmakers that her country is willing to discuss the legalization of drugs, adding that “debate on this issue should be promoted at an international level.” Foreign Minister Patricia Espinosa made these comments during the latest gathering of EuroLat, a group of Members of the European Parliament and Latin American congresistas, who gather occasionally to discuss international issues…via Univision News

Appia and America Movil to bring Apps to all of Latin America — America Movil, the largest mobile operator in the Americas, announced this week the launch of its iApps Application Stores powered by Appia, bringing a vast catalog of apps and games to all America Movil subscribers across Latin America. The iApps Application Stores are now available through America Movil’s operating partners Claro, Comcel, and Telcel reaching over 240 million mobile subscribers in 18 countries across Latin America including Argentina, Chile, Brazil, Guatemala, Honduras, and Mexico…via Market Watch

US and Mexico in landmark oil deal - US and Mexican oil companies are to be given rights to drill in a previously disputed area of the Gulf of Mexico under a landmark deal between the two governments that reflects their eagerness to develop domestic oil and gas production. An area of the gulf along the maritime boundary between the two countries, long left unexplored because of legal uncertainty about rights over its resources, will be made available to US oil groups and Pemex, the Mexican state oil company. The agreement follows a joint commitment made in May 2010 by Barack Obama, US president, and Felipe Calderón, president of Mexico…via The Financial Times

Obama tells Univision he didn’t break his promise on immigration reform - President Obama fought back against the growing belief among Latinos that he broke his campaign promise on immigration reform and said he would get it done in a second term, during an interview with Univision Radio that aired Wednesday. The president, looking to renew enthusiasm for his campaign among Latino voters, appeared on the Los Angeles-based “Piolin Por La Mañana” Show on Univision Radio hosted by Eddie “Piolin” Sotelo, arguably the most influential Spanish-language radio personality in the country. “Piolin, I would only have broken my promise if I hadn’t tried. But ultimately, I’m one man,” he said when asked if he broke his promise. “You know, we live in a democracy. We don’t live in a monarchy. I’m not the king. I’m the president. And so, I can only implement those laws that are passed through Congress.” In a bold statement, Obama expressed confidence he would win reelection and attempt to pass immigration reform again in a second term. “My presidency is not over, I’ve got another five years coming up. We’re going to get this done,” he said…via Univision News

Slideshow - A Turning Point for Tijuana – A great photo essay. The city tears down La Ocho prison and hopes for rebirth…via The New York Times

Walmex fourth-quarter profit jumps 26% - Wal-Mart de Mexico, Mexico’s largest retailer, reported a 26 per cent leap in fourth-quarter profits as improving consumer confidence and aggressive store expansion boosted sales. Adam Thomson writes “Walmex, as the company is known locally, said on Monday that net income in the period between October and December last year was 8.2bn pesos ($643m), up from 6.5bn pesos during the same quarter in 2010. Analysts had expected a figure closer to 7.7bn pesos.  The strong results also reflected Walmex’s aggressive store expansion last year, which saw the company open one new store a day on average in Mexico.

The company also opened 76 new stores in Central America. It now has 2,700 stores in the region, and is the largest private employer in Mexico”…via The Financial Times

Cash-rich Latin Americans help resuscitate Miami real estate – I see this every day, Latin Americans are clearly boosting the Miami economy. And they are paying in cash. Kevin Gray writes “many Latin Americans have long had a love affair with Miami, but rarely has it been so intense — as least judging by the property market. Cash-rich Latin Americans, spearheaded by Venezuelans and Brazilians, have led a charge into Miami real estate, helping to spur a recovery in a market that once stood as a poster child of America’s housing bust. Enticed by what they view as cheap real estate prices and paying in cash, Latin American buyers have snapped up condominiums, apartments and houses as investments or second homes. They are cashing in on recent heady economic growth their region, which also weathered the global downturn fairly well”…via Reuters

Are Puerto Ricans immigrants? Nuria Net writes “of course, technically, Puerto Ricans are not immigrants. But even though we have freedom of mobility and the coveted blue passport, that doesn’t exempt us from cultural, linguistic, economic, and discriminatory hardships and experiences that any immigrant — legal or not, Latino or not — go through. Its not the same to move from Ponce to Chicago as it is from Philadelphia to Seattle. But it’s certainly not the same as moving from Guadalajara to Houston either (although culturally, Texas and northern Mexico are very similar). Latin Americans like to point this out to us a lot. We have it easy, they tell us, in terms of the paperwork…via Univision News and join the conversation on Facebook