Folha De S. Paulo: Investors Eye Brazil Election

Brazil, like many other democracies, is polarized over politics and foreign investment. Voters head to the polls on 28 October to select between far-right candidate Jair Bolsonaro and leftist Fernando Haddad. Bolsonaro has led in the polls, and China eyes the outcome, concerned about Bolsonaro’s nationalist views. “The candidate, already known for his criticism towards former state companies that were bought by Chinese investors, has been lately speaking again against Asian investments in Brazil,” reports Taís Hirata for Folha De S. Paulo. The president of the Chamber of Commerce Brazil-China suggests the candidate is needlessly worried about Chinese politics or control of Brazil – and that Chinese investments supported Brazil during a recession. Brazil ranks among the world’s top 10 economies and the country of more than 200 million is the largest democracy in South America. Brazil’s top exports are soy beans, iron ore, raw sugar and crude petroleum and the top destinations are China and the US. The US leads on imports, but China is close behind. Update: Bolsonaro won with 55 percent of the vote. – YaleGlobal