According to Ruchir Sharma, there is not much fire left in BRICS nations.
Every decade for the last half century , a new economic force has arisen to capture the world's admiration , most recently Japan in the 1980s and Silicon Valley in the 1990s. But as both those cases show, the big thing in one decade rarely stays hot in the next.
In the last decade the hype was for the Brics - an acronym for Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa - as the rising axis of global economic might. This sense of destiny inspired the launch of the Brics summits , but by the time the latest summit had closed in Durban, the optimism was greatly diminished , and the search for common ground was increasingly elusive.
The inherent tensions between the Brics complicates the task of getting anything practical done at the summit. China's economy dwarfs all the others combined, triggering natural suspicions. The summit had aimed to create a Brics bank to challenge western institutions such as the IMF and the World Bank, but the talks ended inconclusively over who would fund the bank, and for what purpose.
On a recent visit to South Africa, it was clear that many members fear China, with its huge war chest of foreign currency reserves, would dominate a Brics bank. Several South African CEOs told me that China was interested in their country mainly as a staging point for access to the rest of Africa. With economies and commercial interests this widely varied, it's not surprising that in five previous summits dating back to 2009, these parties have produced little concrete action.
The bigger story now is that the Brics are beset by domestic economic challenges that leave them less willing or able to cut deals at global summits. Last decade, many economies could grow by riding the tide of easy money pouring out of the US and Europe, and the resulting expansion in global trade. Now, the easy money has dried up and growth in global trade is slowing . It is every nation for itself.
About the author:http://breakoutnations.com/
In economics, BRIC is a grouping acronym that refers to the countries of Brazil, Russia, India and China. Brics - Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa
http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/politics/and/nation/Brics-summits-are-so-last-decade-All-members-are-slowing-down/articleshow/19319116.cms
Every decade for the last half century , a new economic force has arisen to capture the world's admiration , most recently Japan in the 1980s and Silicon Valley in the 1990s. But as both those cases show, the big thing in one decade rarely stays hot in the next.
In the last decade the hype was for the Brics - an acronym for Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa - as the rising axis of global economic might. This sense of destiny inspired the launch of the Brics summits , but by the time the latest summit had closed in Durban, the optimism was greatly diminished , and the search for common ground was increasingly elusive.
The inherent tensions between the Brics complicates the task of getting anything practical done at the summit. China's economy dwarfs all the others combined, triggering natural suspicions. The summit had aimed to create a Brics bank to challenge western institutions such as the IMF and the World Bank, but the talks ended inconclusively over who would fund the bank, and for what purpose.
On a recent visit to South Africa, it was clear that many members fear China, with its huge war chest of foreign currency reserves, would dominate a Brics bank. Several South African CEOs told me that China was interested in their country mainly as a staging point for access to the rest of Africa. With economies and commercial interests this widely varied, it's not surprising that in five previous summits dating back to 2009, these parties have produced little concrete action.
The bigger story now is that the Brics are beset by domestic economic challenges that leave them less willing or able to cut deals at global summits. Last decade, many economies could grow by riding the tide of easy money pouring out of the US and Europe, and the resulting expansion in global trade. Now, the easy money has dried up and growth in global trade is slowing . It is every nation for itself.
About the author:http://breakoutnations.com/
In economics, BRIC is a grouping acronym that refers to the countries of Brazil, Russia, India and China. Brics - Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa
http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/politics/and/nation/Brics-summits-are-so-last-decade-All-members-are-slowing-down/articleshow/19319116.cms
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