The Japanese people have a remarkable capacity to rebuild their country after disaster. Consider the medium-term impact of the current tragedy; it is not all negative.

Euromoney’s sixth Latin American company ranking is based on a survey of market analysts at major banks and research institutes in Latin America. We received 103 responses in 2011. Respondents were asked to nominate the top three companies in each of the countries or sectors they covered, bearing in mind market strength, profitability, growth potential, quality of management and earnings.

International investor interest in Latin America has intensified scrutiny of the corporate governance and investor relations of companies in the region. Big companies such as Vale, Petrobras and bank BBVA have responded remarkably well to this scrutiny. Rob Dwyer reports.

Nigeria’s finance minister, Olusegun Aganga, says he has nothing to hide about the pre-election depletion of the country’s Excess Crude Account. But, as he explains to Dominic O’Neill, with a new sovereign wealth fund the government will save more, protecting the economy from shocks and encouraging private and foreign investment in key infrastructure projects.

Is equity issuance faltering in Latin America, in particular Brazil, because of overoptimistic expectations from issuers and their lead banks? Might a shift in focus away from Brazil be beneficial? Rob Dwyer finds out.

Goldman Sachs’s Gary Cohn thinks hedge funds, not banks, are likely to cause the next financial crisis. He needs to take a long hard stare in the looking glass.

The equity transaction that Petrobras priced on September 23 last year set a world record. The deal was skilfully executed but many of the arguments that divided investor opinion on the transaction rumble on. Rob Dwyer tells the inside story.

Goldman Sachs’s Gary Cohn thinks hedge funds, not banks, are likely to cause the next financial crisis. He needs to take a long hard stare in the looking glass

With Portugal struggling to pay its debts and the economy shrinking, the 
country needs help. Enter Angola – oil rich, with money to burn, and Portugal’s former prized colony. Angolan investment is growing fast – and nowhere more quickly than in the country’s troubled banks. Some Portuguese are up in arms about it. Sudip Roy reports.

Finance minister tells Euromoney he hopes legislation is passed in the next month; External managers have already been approached for fund which could receive $26 billion in its first year

Despite growing concerns over Egypt’s ability to cope with a significant hit to its economy, the relative strength of the country’s finances mean that its leaders have some breathing space. But that may not be true for other countries in the region. Andrew Mortimer, Deputy Editor of Euromoney Country Risk, reports.

A falling dollar, rising commodity prices, and inflation in Asia threaten the standard of living in the West and especially in the USA, and undermine the reserve currency system.

Jean Pierre Mustier, the former head of Société Générale’s corporate and investment bank, will this week be appointed as head of UniCredit’s corporate and investment banking division, Euromoney has learnt. The position was previously held by Sergio Ermotti, who quit last autumn to join UBS. Mustier will report directly to UniCredit’s recently appointed chief executive, Federico Ghizzoni. Mustier joined Société Générale in 1987 from university and enjoyed an impressive career that saw him ultimately running the investment bank for five years. He was often spoken of as a successor to the group’s CEO, Daniel Bouton, but was caught up in the fall-out from the disastrous Kerviel trading fraud. In August 2009, Mustier resigned from Société Générale following charges brought by the French regulator, Autorité des Marchés Financiers, over allegations of insider trading. He was later cleared of all legal charges and is appealing an administrative fine imposed by the AMF.

The fund management business of Saudi Arabia’s biggest investment bank – NCB Capital – grew assets under management by 23.5% last year, adding SR6.8 billion ($1.8 billion) – 95% of the total market growth last year. NCB Capital has a 37% share of Saudi mutual funds.

The inadequacy of investment banks’ risk management systems was glaringly exposed during the financial crisis. Since then, the industry has sought to understand what went wrong. Will the banks be better prepared next time? Dawn Cowie investigates.

Credit Suisse retains the global overall crown but it’s all change in the regional and country results.

Affluenza has caught a cold. Those hoping to piggyback off an ever expanding middle-class piggybank should take due note.

Germany’s fragmenting political scene tends towards stasis on big decisions, with key voting groups settling for conservatism. It bodes ill for the country’s role in solving EU problems.

Governance weaknesses exposed; Sector in limbo

Focus shifting from Brazil; Agribusiness a particular interest

Growth is good for emerging economies but overheating is an ever-present danger. Governments are still failing to devise suitable cooling measures.

Record issuance predicted; But investors will be more choosy

Naguib Sawiris has built large parts of his empire by being prepared to do business where other companies would fear to tread. He explains how he became a telecoms operator, banker and even an hotelier in the biggest rogue state of all, North Korea.

North Korea. Zimbabwe. Tunisia. Algeria. Iraq. Pakistan. Egypt. It’s a list of the world’s flashpoints. And they’re all part of Egyptian entrepreneur Naguib Sawiris’s unique telecoms empire. So when his Orascom group needed financing, and then sought a buyer, it presented Sawiris’s advisers with a unique set of challenges. Eric Ellis tells the fascinating story of corporate finance in the new world order.

Ghana will experience its first full year of oil production in 2011. Up to 120 thousand barrels of oil a day will be produced according to new research from Renaissance Capital. Oil production from the offshore Jubilee Field is being managed by a consortium lead by UK resources company Tullow Oil. This should propel real GDP growth to 10.5% in 2011, according to new research from Renaissance Capital. The government estimates that 250,000 barrels will be produced by 2013. Tax revenues generated from oil production are expected to contribute 1 percent of GDP this year, (approximately 300 million Euros). Oil exports are forecast to contribute 8-10 percent of GDP in 2011.