Category: Latin America

Suriname is carbon negative but needs a plan for a sustainable future

Ana Paula Picasso

Suriname is one of only three carbon-negative countries (along with Butan and Panama) Paradoxically the country is extremely vulnerable to climate change. Suriname is one of only three carbon-negative countries (along with Butan and Panama)  in the world. This means that it is able to absorb more carbon dioxide than it emits. The country is also one of the most biodiverse countries in South America. For a country to get carbon negative status, the country has to have a negative carbon balance. The country has to be able to absorb…

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Latin America’s fintech gold rush is China-sized

Guest

While traditional investors continue to skim the froth of the developed world’s overcrowded venture scene, VCs who analyze emerging markets are uncovering regions where valuations are low, and rapid changes are undeniably afoot. Emerging market VCs have identified Latin America—a place brimming with presently low-value enterprises that bear large growth potential—as a region whose rise will rival China’s digital revolution a decade ago.  And just as a fintech boom in China was what begat the country’s ubiquitous “Super Apps” like WeChat and Alibaba, a fintech boom in Latin American will…

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Progressive politics in Latin America needs a Green Democratic Revolution

Ana Paula Picasso

A green populism could be the basis of a new kind of politics in Latin America, one that embraces many of the region’s struggles in a challenge to neoliberalism Guest post by Rodrigo Echecopar With the climate crisis emerging as the next great challenge, many progressive leaders in advanced economies have advocated for a Green New Deal, which would shift economic policy and redistribute wealth. In the Global South, however, the centrality of a green transformation is still contested. Some argue that these countries should focus on pressing social issues…

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Emerging Markets are ready for international trade, but need trade finance

Ana Paula Picasso

Emerging markets have grown at a lightning speed. Over the last 20 years, it has resulted in transforming international trading practices. Emerging economies now play a larger role in international trade than ever before. Twenty years ago, emerging economies accounted for about 30 percent of the world’s trade. Today, the figure stands at nearly 50 percent.
 
As supply and demand grow, developing market enterprises require ongoing working capital to maximize distribution, operational efficiency, and inventory turnover. International trade financing companies can assist emerging-market businesses in improving their cash flow position and reducing their risk exposure.
 
International trade finance companies typically extend working capital to businesses in emerging markets by providing them with trade finance facilities such as documentary collections, letters of credit, standby letters of credit, factoring facilities, and export credit. When a buyer purchases goods from a seller,

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Shortage of coffee in 2021 might see record prices

Ana Paula Picasso
Brazil coffee shortage 2021

Some of the most significant coffee-producing regions got less than half of the average amount of rain. Brazil is the world’s largest exporter of coffee. The rainy season in Brazil often occurs during the northern hemisphere’s winter, giving enough water for farmers to irrigate coffee plants and keep them alive for several months. Bloomberg reported this week that Brazil’s rainy season suffered a severe shortage of rain. Some of the most important coffee-producing regions received less than half the typical quantity of rain. As a result, “output of arabica coffee,…

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Why the next viral social media channel is coming from emerging markets

Ana Paula Picasso

Tiktok, which was created in China, witnessed an increase in the number of users on its app. Silicon Valley, once the origin of the first generation of social media applications such as Facebook and Instagram, is losing its position as the world’s only tech powerhouse. I invited Andy Tian, CEO of Asia Innovations Group, on the EMT podcast to discuss this shift in social media trends and the second generation of social media apps that are coming from emerging markets. The Chinese founded Tiktok saw an explosion of users in…

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