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Strategies & Market Trends : Telebras (TBH) & Brazil -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: md1derful who wrote (7680)	9/9/1998 3:14:00 PM
From: Steve Fancy	Respond to of 22640

Bear Stearns joins wave cutting Latam GDP forecast Reuters, Wednesday, September 09, 1998 at 15:00 MEXICO CITY, Sept 9 (Reuters) - Bear Stearns on Wednesday joined a growing wave of brokerages slashing their estimates for economic growth in Latin America because of the spreading Asia crisis and Russia's currency devaluation. Bear Stearns analysts David Malpass and Jennifer Woolman said in a report that they had scaled back their expectations for Latin American gross domestic product growth in 1999 to 3.0 percent from 4.5 percent. The analysts noted that the United States and the International Monetary Fund "have had no policy to address this cycle of crushing devaluations," which began in Asia and spread to Russia. "The contagion to Latin America's markets was severe and is continuing. It is too early to fully assess the negative impact on the region's economic performance," they added. Bear Stearns cut its GDP growth forecast for Argentina in 1999 to 4.0 percent from 6.0 percent. It slashed its estimate for Brazil's 1999 GDP growth to 2.0 percent from 4.0 percent, and cut its estimate for 1998 to 1.7 percent from 2.3 percent. The brokerage cut its growth forecasts for Chile to 4.5 percent in 1999 from 5.5 percent, and to 5.0 percent this year from 5.5 percent. For Colombia, it estimated 1999 GDP growth of 2.0 percent, unchanged from an estimated 2.0 percent for 1998. Its previous forecasts were for 3.0 percent for both years. Bear Stearns said it expected Mexico's economy to grow 4.0 percent in 1999 compared with a previous estimate of 5.0 percent, and 4.5 percent this year versus a previous estimate of 5.0 percent. The investment house slashed its forecasts for Peru to 3.5 percent GDP growth in 1999, down from a previous forecast of 5.0 percent. The new forecasts were based on three assumptions: U.S. growth remaining relatively strong; Brazil not devaluing but defending the real for a long time; and no U.S. or Latin American moves toward currency boards, dollarization or price-rule monetary policies. "If either of the first two assumptions is wrong, Latin America's economies will perform significantly worse than we are forecasting," Malpass and Woolman wrote. mexicocity.newsroom@reuters.com)) Copyright 1998, Reuters News Service

To: md1derful who wrote (7680)	9/9/1998 3:15:00 PM
From: Steve Fancy	Respond to of 22640

Brazil forex mkts seen losing more dollars on Wed Reuters, Wednesday, September 09, 1998 at 14:17 SAO PAULO, Sept 9 (Reuters) - Unabated nervousness in world financial markets put new pressure on Brazil's local markets on Wednesday, according to foreign exchange dealers who reported seeing big dollar outflows during the trading day. Dealers estimated that about $850 million would flee the country's commercial and floating forex markets by the end of the day Wednesday, after they saw a net drainage of $885 million on Tuesday. Tuesday's dollar outflow, while robust, remained well below a $2.925 billion drainage posted last Friday -- the biggest one-day outflow since last year's Asian crisis. Outflows had declined significantly after the government said late Friday that it was effectively raising prime lending rates by 50 percent to nearly 30 percent. Markets were closed on Monday for the Independence Day holiday. On Wednesday, the Central Bank announced additional measures to cap continuous outflows of the U.S. currency. It launched new dollar-indexed notes linked to the dollar rate in the floating exchange market, in a bid to give investors a way to hedge their positions in the local currency real. Meanwhile, forex dealers speculated the Central Bank, through state-owned Banco do Brasil, was selling dollars in the forex markets Wednesday to relieve pressure on the exchange rate amid the dollar outflows. The real weakened to 1.1790 against the dollar, or down 0.24 percent from Tuesday's close by 1445 local/1745 gmt. Copyright 1998, Reuters News Service

To: md1derful who wrote (7680)	9/9/1998 3:16:00 PM
From: Steve Fancy	Respond to of 22640

Argentina's Kiguel backs Brazil's fiscal measures Reuters, Wednesday, September 09, 1998 at 12:12 BUENOS AIRES, Sept 9 (Reuters) - Argentine Undersecretary of Finance Miguel Kiguel was quoted Wednesday as saying the measures announced by Brazil to trim its fiscal deficit were a "positive signal" amid financial market turmoil. Kiguel told La Nacion daily that the Brazilian measures were "in the right direction." Brazilian Finance Minister Pedro Malan said Tuesday the government hoped to reduce the country's dependence on foreign savings and raise domestic savings in order to reduce the fiscal deficit. More immediately, the government said it was going to cut the federal budgets for 1998 and 1999 in a bid to reduce the public sector budget deficit, seen as one of Brazil's most pressing economic problems. buenosaires.newsroom@reuters.com)) Copyright 1998, Reuters News Service