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GIC opens office in Brazil

SINGAPORE – Sovereign wealth fund GIC has opened an office in Sao Paulo after buying stakes in some Brazilian companies, in a show of confidence in Latin America’s economic growth.

SINGAPORE – Sovereign wealth fund GIC has opened an office in Sao Paulo after buying stakes in some Brazilian companies, in a show of confidence in Latin America’s economic growth.

The new office will focus on investments in real estate, healthcare, financial and business services, as well as natural resources and infrastructure, GIC said in a statement yesterday.

“Although emerging markets remain volatile, we are confident of the long-term Latin America growth story,” GIC Group Chief Investment Officer Lim Chow Kiat said in the statement. “Our presence in Brazil will enable our partners to engage early and interact closely with the GIC team, which is very beneficial for complex and sizeable investments.”

Dr Wolfgang Schwerdtle, who has been with GIC for five years, will head the office. The Sao Paulo branch will add to GIC’s network of eight overseas offices, including in London, Mumbai, Shanghai, Tokyo and New York.

Brazil has outperformed developed markets since 2000, but its economy has taken a hit in recent years due to investor concerns about the United States Federal Reserve ending its monetary stimulus.

GIC bought 5.02 per cent of communications technology provider Linx, said a filing by Linx on March 10. It also increased its stake in Sao Paulo-based food processor BRF last month and in October agreed to invest in water and sewage treatment firm Aegea Saneamento e Participacoes.

Four per cent of GIC’s assets were in Latin America as of March 31 last year, unchanged from the previous year, said its annual report issued in August. That compared with 36 per cent in the US and 11 per cent in the eurozone area. Agencies

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