Obelisk International News, Marbella, January 17 2012. 2012 gets off to a flying start for investments in Brazil. The news that Brazil now ranks as the world’s sixth largest economy confirms the potential for Brazilian investment opportunities.

Strong economic growth over the last two years has pushed Brazil up global rankings during 2010 and 2011. This coupled with a poor performance in many European countries means Brazil has overtaken the UK in world GDP rankings.

Emerging Market Dominance

The latest global economic positions have been released by the Centre for Economics and Business Research (CEBR). According to Chief Executive Douglas McWilliams, “Brazil has beaten European countries at soccer for a long time, but beating them at economics is a new phenomenon”.

CEBR forecast further advancement by Brazil and other emerging markets during 2012 as the economic tables turn their back on Europe and look towards new economies. The BRIC economies (Brazil, Russia, India and China) will dominate the world’s top ten by 2020, surpassed only by the US and Japan.

The CEBR findings reiterate the rising power of emerging markets and their potential as centres for investment opportunities. Investments in Brazil and China were particularly strong in 2011 and this tendency is expected to continue this year.

Brazilian Investment Hotspots

Foreign investment in Brazil in 2011 reached record levels fuelled by huge global investor interest in the country. Brazilian property was a main focal point for investment, particularly commercial real estate and social housing within the government programme Minha Casa Minha Vida.

Brazilian alternative investments also thrived last year with private-equity and hedge funds at the forefront. Brazilian real estate funds increased hugely too as foreign investors poured money into funds backing the buoyant property market in Brazil.

A similar pattern is expected this year given that the drivers behind Brazilian real estate – increasing purchasing power and growing middle class – are still very much in place. Minha Casa Minha Vida (the largest real estate investment in Brazil) moves into the second year of its final phase backed by massive government funds.

“We believe 2012 will be another excellent year for Brazilian investment,” says Gary Hardacre, CEO of Obelisk International, “and the rise to sixth position in global economic ranking confirms investor confidence in the country.” With all the signs pointing to continued high returns from investment opportunities across the board in Brazilian real estate, Brazil is difficult to beat.

About Obelisk International: Obelisk International offers select investment opportunities in Brazil in a range of sectors such as social housing, residential real estate and construction. Obelisk gives investors security, profitability and diversity thanks to a combination of close attention to our clients' investment requirements and high quality in-house research and analysis.

For more information on Brazilian investments and to find out about Obelisk International’s latest opportunities for investment in Brazil, contact us on 0034 952 820 319. Via email: info@obeliskinternational.com or visit our website: www.obeliskinternational.com. Follow us on Twitter – @obeliskinvest and Facebook. Join the Obelisk International network on LinkedIn.