Corrosive corruption
The Economist shows the correlation between UN’s Human Development Index and the Corruption Perception Index, published by Transparency International. Although we should never forget the golden rule of inference, the graphic is quite interesting.
The Economist on Brazil’s oil reserves
One of the best articles I’ve read so far on Brazil’s ‘below the salt’ oil reserves. This extract sums it up:
Becoming an oil exporter could complete the development process that began with the conquering of hyperinflation in 1994. Because the country’s previous period of economic development was brought to an end by the oil shocks of the 1970s, self-sufficiency in energy looks more than usually enticing to Brazilians. Plentiful hard currency looks good, too; it is just nine years since the country last had to borrow from the IMF to stabilise its currency. Petro-dollars will boost national saving—currently just 16% of GDP—creating room for Brazil to upgrade its decrepit infrastructure. And oil would add pleasingly to the geopolitical heft of a country keen to assert itself as a global power.
The possible missteps, though, are legion. Huge, technically challenging projects tend to run late and over budget everywhere. Last year’s disaster in the Gulf of Mexico is a grim reminder of the risks in such “ultra-deep” drilling projects. And countries with big oil finds are prone to an ominous list of economic ailments: capital absorption (the diversion of funds from other worthwhile investments); Dutch disease (oil exports pushing the currency to a level that hurts other industries); and reform fatigue (governments’ unwillingness to tackle structural economic problems when they can see vast wealth on the horizon).
You can read it on The Economist website.
Master of Arts in Political Science at the University of São Paulo. 
