Ten years ago this week, Jim O’Neill, chairman of Goldman Sachs Asset Management, coined the term BRIC, elevating the profile of four countries, Brazil, Russia, India and China, that he thought were poised to become “growth economies.”
Brazil conditioned the disbursement of more funds for the IMF to help countries in crisis to a greater say in the multilateral organization and the advance of European initiatives to solve the current Euro and debt crisis.
IMF chief Christine Lagarde who this week will be visiting Latinamerica said that Brazil, Mexico and Peru, like to many other countries in the region have done remarkably well over the past few years and can provide some lessons to the advanced countries.
IMF chief specifically excluded Argentina from its coming Latinamerican tour because the government of President Cristina Fernandez still has to comply with what was agreed last July, basically normalizing the controversial INDEC stats office and open its books to auditing as happens with all other members of the G20.
The Managing Director of the IMF Christine Lagarde will be making her first official tour of Latin America when she visits Peru, Mexico and Brazil at the end of November and beginning of December according to spokesperson David Hawley.
The head of the IMF warned on Wednesday that Europe's debt crisis risked plunging the global economy into a lost decade and said it was up to rich nations to shoulder the burden of restoring growth and confidence.
Brazilian president Dilma Rousseff said that solutions to European and global economic difficulties need to promote economic growth and employment. Ms Rousseff arrived Wednesday in France for the summit of G-20 leaders this week, but before will be meeting with peers from the BRICS group to work out a common stance.
Germany and France told Greece on Wednesday it should make up its mind by mid-December whether it wants to stay in the Euro zone when Greeks vote on a 130-billion-Euro bailout.
Germany's political opposition has succeeded in ensuring plans to enhance Europe's bailout fund be brought to a vote in parliament on Wednesday. The decision came after the Bundestag's plenary session rejected the opposition's demands for an open debate just Friday.
Greek Finance Minister Evangelos Venizelos dismissed reports that he has discussed a scenario of an orderly default by Athens with International Monetary Fund Chief Christine Lagarde and European Central Bank head Jean-Claude Trichet.