Brazil's leading industrialists have begun a charm offensive in the Gulf, aiming to coax Arab investors into a market with small but growing links to the Middle East.
The South American nation, now the sixth-biggest economy in the world, is poised for even greater growth as industrial titans such as the mining company Vale and the aircraft manufacturer Embraer expand internationally and the country prepares to host the 2014 Fifa World Cup and the 2016 Olympic Games.
"Brazil is, to some extent, booming," said Fernando Henrique Cardoso, a former president of Brazil who is leading a trade delegation to the UAE and Qatar this week.
"We're trying to extend our contact to different parts of the world."
He was accompanied by delegates from Itaú Unibanco, a Latin American lender that is the eighth-largest in the world and is eyeing expansion to Abu Dhabi, Qatar and Saudi Arabia.
Last year, foreign direct investment in Brazil from Gulf countries totalled less than US$5 billion (Dh18.36bn), out of a total of $66.7bn, said Rainer Schwarz, the head of Itaú Unibanco's current Middle East office in Dubai.
The country was seeking to capitalise further on the investment flows that had made Brazil the "big B of the Brics", said Ricardo Villela Marino, a partner of Itaú Unibanco and chief executive of the bank's Latin American operations.
"Brazil needs a lot of capital for infrastructure, real estate, the energy sector and education," he said.
The links between the UAE and Brazil are steadily growing, as more Gulf investors look to the fast-growing Latin American economy for investment returns.
Mubadala Development, a strategic investment company owned by the Abu Dhabi Government, last month acquired a $2bn stake in Brazil's EBX Group, owned by Eike Batista, Brazil's richest man.
The deal - Mubadala's first venture into Brazil - indicated a growing level of confidence among Middle Eastern investors in Latin America, said Jawad Qasim, the head of Itaú's investment banking business in the Middle East.
"If they were afraid, I don't think they'd have done it," he said.
The Dubai Department of Tourism and Commerce Marketing has also targeted Brazil in an effort to expand the emirate's tourism trade, while last month the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority hired a leader for its Latin America desk.
Latin America is steadily becoming more important to the Gulf as investors seek new territory, said Aziz Unan, a fund manager at Renaissance Asset Managers who covers eastern European and Middle Eastern stocks.
"It's a new geographic area, historically with limited trade links," he said.
And similar to the Middle East, Latin America was also poised to benefit from a booming youth population and a rising middle class, Mr Unan said.
"From a demographic point of view, there are not that many areas globally where you'll find favourable demographic situations," he said.
ghunter@thenational.ae
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
ESSENTIALS
The flights
Emirates flies from Dubai to Phnom Penh via Yangon from Dh2,700 return including taxes. Cambodia Bayon Airlines and Cambodia Angkor Air offer return flights from Phnom Penh to Siem Reap from Dh250 return including taxes. The flight takes about 45 minutes.
The hotels
Rooms at the Raffles Le Royal in Phnom Penh cost from $225 (Dh826) per night including taxes. Rooms at the Grand Hotel d'Angkor cost from $261 (Dh960) per night including taxes.
The tours
A cyclo architecture tour of Phnom Penh costs from $20 (Dh75) per person for about three hours, with Khmer Architecture Tours. Tailor-made tours of all of Cambodia, or sites like Angkor alone, can be arranged by About Asia Travel. Emirates Holidays also offers packages.
AS IT STANDS IN POOL A
1. Japan - Played 3, Won 3, Points 14
2. Ireland - Played 3, Won 2, Lost 1, Points 11
3. Scotland - Played 2, Won 1, Lost 1, Points 5
Remaining fixtures
Scotland v Russia – Wednesday, 11.15am
Ireland v Samoa – Saturday, 2.45pm
Japan v Scotland – Sunday, 2.45pm
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Indoor cricket in a nutshell
Indoor Cricket World Cup - Sept 16-20, Insportz, Dubai
16 Indoor cricket matches are 16 overs per side
8 There are eight players per team
9 There have been nine Indoor Cricket World Cups for men. Australia have won every one.
5 Five runs are deducted from the score when a wickets falls
4 Batsmen bat in pairs, facing four overs per partnership
Scoring In indoor cricket, runs are scored by way of both physical and bonus runs. Physical runs are scored by both batsmen completing a run from one crease to the other. Bonus runs are scored when the ball hits a net in different zones, but only when at least one physical run is score.
Zones
A Front net, behind the striker and wicketkeeper: 0 runs
B Side nets, between the striker and halfway down the pitch: 1 run
C Side nets between halfway and the bowlers end: 2 runs
D Back net: 4 runs on the bounce, 6 runs on the full
Remaining fixtures
- August 29 – UAE v Saudi Arabia, Hazza bin Zayed Stadium, Al Ain
- September 5 – Iraq v UAE, Amman, Jordan (venue TBC)
COMPANY%20PROFILE
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Brown/Black belt finals
3pm: 49kg female: Mayssa Bastos (BRA) v Thamires Aquino (BRA)
3.07pm: 56kg male: Hiago George (BRA) v Carlos Alberto da Silva (BRA)
3.14pm: 55kg female: Amal Amjahid (BEL) v Bianca Basilio (BRA)
3.21pm: 62kg male: Gabriel de Sousa (BRA) v Joao Miyao (BRA)
3.28pm: 62kg female: Beatriz Mesquita (BRA) v Ffion Davies (GBR)
3.35pm: 69kg male: Isaac Doederlein (BRA) v Paulo Miyao (BRA)
3.42pm: 70kg female: Thamara Silva (BRA) v Alessandra Moss (AUS)
3.49pm: 77kg male: Oliver Lovell (GBR) v Tommy Langarkar (NOR)
3.56pm: 85kg male: Faisal Al Ketbi (UAE) v Rudson Mateus Teles (BRA)
4.03pm: 90kg female: Claire-France Thevenon (FRA) v Gabreili Passanha (BRA)
4.10pm: 94kg male: Adam Wardzinski (POL) v Kaynan Duarte (BRA)
4.17pm: 110kg male: Yahia Mansoor Al Hammadi (UAE) v Joao Rocha (BRA
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
INFO
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KILLING OF QASSEM SULEIMANI
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
PREMIER LEAGUE FIXTURES
All times UAE ( 4 GMT)
Saturday
West Ham United v Tottenham Hotspur (3.30pm)
Burnley v Huddersfield Town (7pm)
Everton v Bournemouth (7pm)
Manchester City v Crystal Palace (7pm)
Southampton v Manchester United (7pm)
Stoke City v Chelsea (7pm)
Swansea City v Watford (7pm)
Leicester City v Liverpool (8.30pm)
Sunday
Brighton and Hove Albion v Newcastle United (7pm)
Monday
Arsenal v West Bromwich Albion (11pm)
MATCH INFO
What: 2006 World Cup quarter-final
When: July 1
Where: Gelsenkirchen Stadium, Gelsenkirchen, Germany
Result:
England 0 Portugal 0
(Portugal win 3-1 on penalties)
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
PREMIER LEAGUE FIXTURES
Saturday (UAE kick-off times)
Watford v Leicester City (3.30pm)
Brighton v Arsenal (6pm)
West Ham v Wolves (8.30pm)
Bournemouth v Crystal Palace (10.45pm)
Sunday
Newcastle United v Sheffield United (5pm)
Aston Villa v Chelsea (7.15pm)
Everton v Liverpool (10pm)
Monday
Manchester City v Burnley (11pm)
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Akeed
Based: Muscat
Launch year: 2018
Number of employees: 40
Sector: Online food delivery
Funding: Raised $3.2m since inception
Sri Lanka World Cup squad
Dimuth Karunaratne (c), Lasith Malinga, Angelo Mathews, Thisara Perera, Kusal Perera, Dhananjaya de Silva, Kusal Mendis, Isuru Udana, Milinda Siriwardana, Avishka Fernando, Jeevan Mendis, Lahiru Thirimanne, Jeffrey Vandersay, Nuwan Pradeep, Suranga Lakmal.
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Amal likes watching Japanese animation movies and Manga - her favourite is The Ancient Magus Bride
She is the eldest of 11 children, and has four brothers and six sisters.
Her dream is to meet with all of her friends online from around the world who supported her work throughout the years
Her favourite meal is pizza and stuffed vine leaves
She ams to improve her English and learn Japanese, which many animated programmes originate in
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Deadpool 2
Dir: David Leitch
Starring: Ryan Reynolds, Josh Brolin, Justin Dennison, Zazie Beetz
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