The revival of global macroeconomics exists only in words, while in reality the situation in many countries remains extremely difficult. According to the preliminary results for 2012, global economic growth was only 3.3%, while for the majority of large developed economies it was zero. It’s no wonder that UNCTAD, summing up the results for 2012, noted the 18% reduction of global growth of foreign direct investments (FDI). Analysts of the World Organization of Creditors are confident that investments in developing markets look much more logical and promising today.

WEJ is beginning a new category on investing in emerging markets. Starting things off is American company Hines, which had its beginnings in small warehouses and today deals in the largest businesses and trading venues in the world. Hines came to Russia more than twenty years ago.
Making a Name for Themselves
The company’s history begins in 1957, when a young engineer by the name of Gerald D. Hines created a tiny firm. It started building warehouses and small office buildings. These were the first bricks laid along the road to larger projects. Ten years later, Shell Oil hired Hines to build an office in downtown Houston. After this, the company’s portfolio was filled with large projects such as: The Galleria, Penncoil Place, Transco Tower, and more than 400 other skyscrapers.

Today, Hines Interests Limited Partnership is one of the largest corporations in the world, with offices in 18 countries. The company currently invests in real estate, development, and property management.
More than 20 years ago, the company started taking interest in emerging markets, where they still invest. In 1992, Hines set up shop in Russia.
Green Business

In late December 2012, the Turkish Prime Minister stated that Standard & Poor’s undeservingly raised Greece’s rating from SD (selective default) to B-, meaning 6 steps up at once, and that in general, the agency’s activities were “completely politicized.” The question that comes up whenever new ratings are released is whether the global rating agencies do not actually reflect the economic situation, as much as they influence the international financial markets by what they themselves do. How fair is that statement?

The Commonwealth of Independent States is spreading its wings following the crisis, with increases in GDP and investments. The CIS’s economy is still far from being stable, and export volumes are still modest. But it is obvious that the Commonwealth will be stronger in the near future, since the amount of its external debt is encouraging compared with other countries.

Separatism is growing in a Europe still suffering from the economic crisis. The most economically developed regions of the largest European countries dream of independence, in one form or another, mainly because the richer regions don’t want to finance the poorer parts of the country. And while everyone knows what Catalonia wants, it might be unexpected that regions in the UK and Germany are heading in the same direction.
But what awaits Catalonia, Scotland and other European regions should they gain independence? And who is left with what?

Having more or less recovered from the consequences of the global financial crisis in 2008, most countries faced a tough battle for investment. But after four post-crisis years, the top countries in restoring and increasing the amount of direct foreign capital are China, Hong Kong, Singapore, and Brazil.
The graph shows that at the beginning of the 2000s, a shift towards investment flows began: Interest in developed countries is falling, while the role of emerging markets is growing. By the mid 2000s, there was investment activity in practically every country, and by 2007-2008, foreign direct investment (FDI) reached its maximum. Then the global financial crisis took its toll and sustainable growth was adjusted.