Argentina’s crisis threatens Brazil’s faltering economy

Brazil is the powerhouse of Latin America: by far the region's largest economy - and largest debtor - it acts as a proxy for the rest of South America. And it's in trouble. The slowing global economy is pumping less money into the country, an energy crisis has created an internal supply shock, and uncertainty over next year's elections is increasing. At the same time, Brazil's exports are too low, its population too poorly educated, and its domestic savings woefully inadequate if it is to compete on the international stage. With all of that to contend with, the last thing Brazil needed was the tango effect: contagion from neighbouring Argentina. Felix Salmon asks whether Brazil, along with the rest of South America, is falling back into crisis