The first sentence of a Reuters article on Brazil’s Carinval is certainly… attention catching:

The 10 million extra government-provided condoms are poised, final touches being put on huge floats depicting Queen Cleopatra and Can-can dancers, and the Barack Obama masks are flying off the shelves.

Would have liked to have known the name of the company making those condoms, eh? That extra 10 million is on top of the 45 million already provided at Carnival.

But even “bigger” news to investors like yourselves is the fact that one float’s dancers were wearing costumes costing $13,000… A PIECE! And this in a massive global financial crisis that has caused even some of the mining towns in surrounding Brazilian states to cancel their parades.

By all estimates, though, folks are spending less money this year, and Brazil expects about a 10% drop in foreign tourists to Carnival.

You wouldn’t know it by the looks of Rio, though. I like to have fun, as you’ve read in these pages before (underground pubs in Slovakia, or crazy futbol matches in Argentina), but some of the videos from this year’s Carnival seem… whew… a bit excessive even for my tastes!

Currently Brazil is a little out of favor with investment analysts. Last week, I told Taipan Insider readers that Citigroup thinks Brazil’s market is in for a slide, and that investors shouldn’t buy in until the Bovespa hits 35,000.

I also told them that I didn’t necessarily agree with Citigroup.

Here’s the thing, though, that everybody does seems to agree on: Countries with strong commodity and cash reserves are going to be great markets on the far side of this financial crisis. The problem is, nobody can time when this crisis will end, or which companies will be around to reap the rewards.

For Brazil, there are a lot of choices, like Companhia Vale (RIO:NYSE), which was just downgraded today despite expanding its iron ore customer base in China…

That means RIO has secured more long-term supply contracts, and that’s a sign of longevity. Clearly something that investors should be looking at if they want to buy shares for the long run in this market.

If you are a member of any of Taipan Publishing Group’s publications, you can read my full article online.

Tags: Brazil, Carnival, Companhia Vale RIO, irone ore

You know, it’s not just U.S. automanufacturers that are feeling the heat from this global financial crisis. Swedish automaker Saab (SAAB-B:Stockholm) just announced that it would be filing for bankruptcy.

Turns out, there’s a connection between U.S. problems and this latest news.

You see, General Motors (GM:NYSE) used to “own” the Saab brand… And that meant owning the company’s debt, too. Like the $340 million loss in 2008. Well, now that GM is in hot water here, and is restructuring its own business, it’s trying to cut out the diseased parts. That’s Saab…

So, the Swedish company is looking for protection from creditors in the bankruptcy filing, and may even sell itself, if there are any potential buyers.

Know anyone that wants to buy an indebted Swedish car company? Anyone? Anyone?

Tags: Automobile Industry, Bankruptcy, Saab, Sweden

When I was in high school, I used to work summers at a camp… It was more of a glorified day care, but I was a teenager, and it was easy work, and by the end of summer I’d saved up $1,500.

Enough, as it turned out, to pay for a ten-day trip to Italy.

I spent three days in glorious Rome, two jam-packed days in sunny Florence, and a day at the infamous site of Pompeii… But my favorite city on the whole trip was Venice. I was taken with the pride of the gondoliers, the beauty of the winding streets, and the sudden, unexpected artesian shop.

One day I found myself standing outside a hot furnace in a glass-blower’s workshop, watching him pinch-form a beautiful green-crested horse figurine. I was enthralled, the maliablity of the hot glass, the sure hands of the artist. I thought that I’d be more than happy to stay there for the rest of my life.

Again, I was a teenager, and it was Italy… the canal-ridden beauty of Venice began to haunt me then.

I haven’t had a chance to go back yet, but judging by an International Herald Tribune article, I might find things a little changed. That glass-blower’s workshop might not be there anymore.

Turns out, some of the older traditions are being force out of the city to make way for touristy cafes and hotels.

I ask you, who would rather spend the afternoon in a Starbuck’s (SBUX:Nasdaq) than in a beautiful workshop? The plaza-side cafes have a long-established legacy, and I don’t have a beef with them. But I can’t even think of Venice without thinking of glass.

It would be a travesty if the next generation of high schoolers can’t lose themselves in the white glow of a small furnace and the hot breath of the glassblower…

Tags: Italy, Trading

On Jan. 28, I told you that mining major Rio Tinto (RTP:NYSE) was in dire need of cash… It needs to pay an $8.9 billion bill by October 2009.

Well, RTP may have found its Knight in Shining Armor, and it’s not long-time rival BHP Billiton (BHP:NYSE). Rather, it’s state-owned Aluminum Corp. of China… or Chinalco. Chinalco already owns 9% of the company, but the two are in talks to buy about $20 billion in assets. Here’s how it would work, as reported by the International Herald Tribune…

“Aluminum Corp. of China, known as Chinalco, would buy bonds convertible into Rio Tinto stock and acquire up to half of some of Rio’s mines.”

The deal is expected to be announced as early as tomorrow, as RTP releases its full-year earnings.

Remember, RTP is looking to offset the massive investment it made in Canada’s Alcan. It went $39 billion in debt to do the deal, and $8.9 billion is due to be paid in October. With metals prices in the dumps, and the currenct economic situation, RTP is scrambling for cash.

Because Chinalco is state-owned, it’s got deeper pockets than many of its competitors. But that also means that if Chinalco acquires a big enough stake, China would - in effect - have “veto” power over any big decisions, like takeover bids.

Like the one BHP put in last November…

BHP has since dropped its bid because of the global financial crisis, but if it decides to renew its bid when metals prices begin climbing again, it might face some difficult opposition.

Tags: China, Mining