Peru Stock Market Attracts Colombia and Chile Investors

“Since August there has been a wave of investments in the Peruvian stock exchange from Chile and Colombia, mainly because Peru is cheaper on a price-to-earnings ratio basis,” said Dickerson Florida, equity portfolio manager with private pension fund AFP Profuturo.

The average price-to-earnings ratio for Peru’s broad general index, the IGBVL, on Sept. 20 was 14.5, said Florida. This compares with 21.9 for Chile’s blue chip IPSA index and 27 for Colombia’s comparable IGBC index on the same date.

The Chilean and Colombian stock exchange have been the most profitable in the region in the first half of the year, and Peru has lagged in comparison, said Florida. More recently however, as Peru’s economy gathers momentum, stocks related to the country’s domestic demand and construction sectors are providing good profits.

“Peru’s booming economy, which is expected to grow by as much as 8% this year, is drawing the attention of investors, as is the planned integration of the Peruvian, Colombian and Chilean stock exchanges in mid-2011″

Read the entire article about Colombia and Chile investors buying Peruvian stocks here.

About Discover Colombia News

Discover Colombia News is a community news website dedicated to Colombia news in English. Located in Medellin, Colombia, we bring you comprehensive news from Colombia in a single source site that is broadcast by a community of reporting bloggers, activists and tourists.

For more information about these or related search topics, please visit our website at http://discovercolombia.net or call us at (214) 717-4914.

Peru, Colombia and Chile stock exchanges merge.

According to the president of Peru’s stock exchange, Roberto Hoyle, the South America countries of Peru, Chile and Colombia will integrate their stock exchanges later this year.

The anticipated event is set to begin on November 22, 2010 and will form the largest stock exchange in South America. The combined equity trading of these three emergin markets could reach in excess of $300 million dollars a day says Colombia’s stock exchange chairman Juan Pablo Cordoba.

The reason for the consolidation is to attract more investors to the Andean countries as their combined emerging markets continue to show enormous growth potential in the region, states  Roberto Hoyle. The increased efficiencies will further add to the capital inflows and attractiveness of the region allowing each country to easily access the other’s exchange products.

About Discover Colombia News

Discover Colombia News is a community news website dedicated to Colombia news in English. Located in Medellin, Colombia, we bring you comprehensive news from Colombia in a single source site that is broadcast by a community of reporting bloggers, activists and tourists.

For more information about these or related search topics, please visit our website at http://discovercolombia.net or call us at (214) 717-4914.

Also highlighted is beautiful video footage of Cabo de La Vela in the La Guajira penisula of Colombia. This area has become a popular destination for tourists that seek out ecotourism adventures that are off the beaten path.

Take a look at this amazing travel report of Cabo de La Vela in the Discover Colombia Travel Guide. We will be updating this section soon with more information and guides regarding how to get to Cabo de La Vela and where to stay, what to do, where to eat, etc. Check back soon for more travel guide information on this exciting ecotourism destination in beautiful La Guajira, Colombia!

Read the entire article here on Discover Colombia News regarding the deadly landslide that happened in Antioquia.

Deadly landslide in Antioquia, Colombia near the town of El Tambo | Photo by El Colombiano

A landslide that killed as many as 30 people or more was caught on film by an engineer on Monday, September 27th in the department of Antioquia. The hope for survivors is dismall as rain soaked mountains are a constant threat every year during the rainy season.

President of Colombia, Juan Manuel Santos will visit visit the town of El Tambo today which is located in the municipality of Giraldo in western Antioquia.

The president will arrive in the area accompanied by the commander of the Highway Police General Rodolfo Palomino, who will join the groups to coordinate the rescue of the missing.
 
The avalanche was reported just after 3:30 pm last Monday as a group of people trying to unload from one vehicle to another were swept away as they tried to continue the journey to Medellin.
 
The director of the Administrative Department of the System of Prevention, Care and Disaster Recovery (Dapard), John Fredy Rendón Roldán, confirmed with El Colombiano that efforts are being made this morning to inspect the landslide area. Specialized machinery will be used to try and stabilize the rain soaked mountainside in order to insure the safety of the relief agencies. Once the area has been stabilized and given the green light to proceed, specialized search dogs will be brought in in an effort to locate any survivors.
 
Authorities also confirmed that an area will closed off so that helicopter support can be administered by the Colombian Air Force.

About Discover Colombia News

Discover Colombia News is a community news website dedicated to Colombia news in English. Located in Medellin, Colombia, we bring you comprehensive news from Colombia in a single source site that is broadcast by a community of reporting bloggers, activists and tourists.

For more information about these or related search topics, please visit our website at http://discovercolombia.net or call us at (214) 717-4914.

Land Reform in Colombia | Ley de Tierra

When Juan Manuel Santos in his inauguration speech said that, “all the land of those displaced by violence, regardless of whose hands it might be in today, will be returned to its rightful owner”, many assumed it was mostly rhetoric. But Colombia’s new president confirmed something of his intention on September 7 when he presented a sweeping and ambitious new land reform bill. If implemented, the Ley de Tierras could have a profound impact on Colombia’s peace prospects. 

The land issue has been at the heart of Colombia’s decades-long conflict. The first manifestos of the left-wing guerrilla Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) focused almost exclusively on land reforms, mainly in response to the government’s failure to adequately curb large-scale landowners (latifundios) that had come to dominate agriculture at the expense of traditional subsistence farmers. As FARC and other guerrilla movements became more influential and active, landowners set up armed self-defense groups in the early 1980s to protect their holdings. The groups were initially legalised by the government and supported by the army, but they soon merged into paramilitary factions and became embroiled in drug trafficking.

Read the entire article about Ley de Tierras and land reform in Colombia under new President Santos here.

About Discover Colombia News

Discover Colombia News is a community news website dedicated to Colombia news in English. Located in Medellin, Colombia, we bring you comprehensive news from Colombia in a single source site that is broadcast by a community of reporting bloggers, activists and tourists.

For more information about these or related search topics, please visit our website at http://discovercolombia.net or call us at (214) 717-4914.

Colombia Shipping Reports 2010

The Colombia Shipping Report provides industry professionals and strategists, corporate analysts, shipping associations, government departments and regulatory bodies with independent forecasts and competitive intelligence on Colombia’s shipping industry.

Colombia’s potential as a growth market for the international maritime sector has been further realised with the news that Goldman Sachs subsidiary SSA Marine will invest in a new box terminal at the port of Barranquilla. Having been largely recognised for its export potential, BMI believes Colombia’s positive demographics and favourable business environment make it an attractive market for the container shipping sector. According to Mundo Maritimo, US-based SSA Marine has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the operator of the port of Barranquilla, Sociedad Portuaria del Norte, to construct a new designated container terminal at the port expected to cost about US$40mn. The country offers considerable potential from a container shipping perspective. Aside from its large consumption base, the country is well positioned geographically to benefit from future trade growth between Asia and Latin America. The port of Barranquilla, in particular, has the potential not only to supply a growing domestic consumer market, but also to position itself as a transhipment hub for other countries in the region. The port is one of the closest major maritime facilities to the Panama Canal which, following an expansion project due to be completed in 2014, will be able to service the largest classes of container vessels making the journey from Asia’s manufacturing hubs to markets on the east coast of the Americas.

Read the entire article here regarding the Colombia shipping report.

About Discover Colombia News

Discover Colombia News is a community news website dedicated to Colombia news in English. Located in Medellin, Colombia, we bring you comprehensive news from Colombia in a single source site that is broadcast by a community of reporting bloggers, activists and tourists.

For more information about these or related search topics, please visit our website at http://discovercolombia.net or call us at (214) 717-4914.

Teen FARC soldiers in Colombia. Children in Colombia are often recruited into the FARC as young as 13 or 14 years old.

The recent military defeat and death of feared FARC leader Mono Joyjoy whose real name is Jorge Briceño Suárez has been called the most crushing blow to the FARC guerrillas in recent history. The Colombian Defense Minister, Rodrigo Rivera has stated that “Mono Joyjoy was the most hated man in Colombia”.

Colombia’s security has dramatically increased ever since 2002 when Ex-President Alvaro Uribe first took office and pledged to the Colombian citizens that he would take back control of the democracy and strike fierce military blows against the 40+ year old guerrilla resistance group known as the FARC. Soon after Uribe took office he began to fulfill his promises and became extremely popular amongst Colombians.

There have been multiple strategic wins against the FARC over the last 8 years, but most notably was the 2008 rescue mission that freed the three Northamerican Hostages as well as others including ex-presidential candidate Ingrid Betancourt. Disguised as the Red Cross, operation ‘Checkmate’ was a real life action movie played out in front of an audience of millions as the Colombian Military scored yet another decisive blow against the resistance group.

Utilizing the most advanced technologies and aided by funding from national taxes as well as programs such as Plan Colombia, the Colombian Military has stepped up their game and shown no mercy in taking back full control of the Colombian Democracy.

Still reeling from previous defeats including the bombing of a FARC camp across the Ecuador border which killed another top commander Raul Reyes as well as the death of the FARC creator Manuel Marulanda, Colombia seems to be on the verge of victory against the group responsible for the longest running civil war in recent world history.

The victory against Mono Joyjoy is important as it removes yet another top commander and one of the most notorious narcoterrorists in Colombia. His death will mean that the already weakened FARC will once again have to re-organize efforts to maintain control of the group at a time when desertion is at an all time high. Adding to this is the recent event that removed Senator Piedad Cordoba from the Colombian Government as she has been officially tied to direct FARC communication as evidenced by computers retrieved at the recent bombing site in La Macarena National Park where Mono Joyjoy was killed.

Is Colombia finally at an end to this bloody and senseless war that has crippled the country for decades? According to top academic mind, the answer is “not likely”. Due to political standoff with the FARC as well as an inability to create a ceasefire, the fighting will continue as each side tries desperately to strike out against the other. The history of distrust that has been repeated over and over by the FARC means that this war may drag out for years to come as Colombian citizens continue to wish for peace in their home country.

The history of violence in Colombia will take years and maybe decades in order to change the behavior of a society that has become accustomed to daily and weekly bloodshed as the extreme profits from drugs fuel a self serving greed that often times is the only way out of poverty for many young Colombians. The precipice must be fought in the schools at an early age when so many Colombian children, especially rural, are taught that FARC and paramilitary culture is normal. As these children act out their daily lives in accordance with societal norms, they are all too often the next generation of recruits for these organizations as alternatives for monetary gain are often scarce in the countryside and rural communities of Colombia.

 Colombian society is unintentionally allowing its children to become victimized at an early age to fall to the prey of never-ending recruitment by military resistance organizations. Education at an early age will be the foundation for the future of peace in Colombia. Until then, the fight will continue to morph from one group to another as greed and desperation force the youth of Colombia into drug motivated wars for financial gain and escape from poverty.