TheStreet.com:
If for no reason other than the scantily-clad revelers adorning the floats in its Carnival parades, Brazil is certain to gain some investor attention now that its annual pre-Lenten festivities are at hand.
But aside from the images permeating TV and computer screens this time of year, how about the investment climate in Brazil?
For someone not already invested in Brazil, there doesn’t currently seem to be any compelling need to immediately get into the market Worldwide, current markets generally present above-average risks to any stock investor, and extreme caution is needed to navigate through these uncharted waters. The depth and duration of any impending U.S. or worldwide economic downturn is still largely unknown. Hence, a prudent investor is most likely to remain on the sidelines at least until the end of the first quarter of 2008 and let the market go through its gyrations.
There is not yet an overwhelming mass of evidence that a significant economic and market correction has already occurred in Brazil.
The Brazilian market’s Bovespa index, like most of the world’s stock market gauges, fell victim to selling in January. It skidded to a closing low of 53709.11 on Jan. 21 from its all-time high of 65790.81 set on Dec. 6 of last year. But within a week, it had recovered to near the 59000 level. The brief setback could hardly be described as a bear market, especially in emerging-market terms.
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