TPT July 2007

Tubotech 2007: there’s an awful lot of tube in Brazil

O n a visit to London in May, the president of the Central Bank of Brazil, Henrique Meirelles, sat for a searching interview with Veja , the leading Brazilian news weekly. After drawing from the nation’s top banker a detailed account of the fiscal status of the country after four years of his stewardship – a period marked by a drop in inflation from 20 to 4 per cent a year – the interviewer brought things to a close with this delightful exchange:

Veja : What are the pressures now?

SHOW FACTS ❖ ❖

Mr Meirelles : Pressures ensuing from an absurd, almost irrational delirium.

DATE Tuesday 02 October – Thursday, 04 October, 2007 VENUE Rodovia dos Imigrantes Expo Centre, São Paulo, Brazil SHOW HOURS 2pm-9pm ORGANISER CONTACTS Grupo Cipa Phone : +55 11 5585 4355 Fax : +55 11 5585 4359 Email : lccipa@cipanet.com.br Website : www.tubotech.com.br

The thought of a delirious populace nearly 200 million strong, in the land of the samba, is very bracing. But the statistics suggest that optimism is amply justified. Because Brazilians – who account for roughly half the population of Latin America – are now living (and buying, and investing) with much lower interest rates. The assertion by the chief of the state bank that the taming of inflation ‘is great for the country’ is well founded.

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The Brazilian economy grew... 4.9 per cent in 2004 and 2.3 per cent in 2005. This is

more than creditable: it is enviable

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Brazil produces more than $1 trillion in goods and services yearly, far outpacing any other country in Latin America. The latest available official data show that the Brazilian economy grew approximately 4.9 per cent in 2004 and 2.3 per cent in 2005. By the standards of the region this is more than creditable: it is enviable. That growth was achieved together with booming exports, healthy external accounts, decreasing unemployment, and reductions in the debt-to-GDP (gross domestic product) ratio. The web portal GlobalEdge gives President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva and his economic team full marks for having implemented ‘prudent fiscal and monetary policies and pursued necessary microeconomic reforms’ . This makes cheering news for those heading to Tubotech 2007, which will take place from 2-4 October 2007 at the Rodovia dos Imigrantes Expo Centre in São Paulo. Over 128 exhibitors have already been confirmed for the event, with visitor numbers set to reflect the buoyancy of a growing economy and successful industry. “There’s an awful lot of coffee in Brazil,” Frank Sinatra informed the smaller world of 1946. There still is – but the Brazil of 2007 offers much, much more. And in Messe Düsseldorf, members of the tube and pipe industry and its related specialities have a seasoned guide to those resources.

Messe Düsseldorf GmbH Fax : +49 211 4560 8525

Email : info@messe-duesseldorf.de Website : www.messe-duesseldorf.de

SPONSORS ABITAM Fax : +55 21 2533 1872

Email : abitam@abitam.com.br Website : www.abitam.com.br

International Tube Association Fax : +44 1926 314755 Email : info@itatube.org Website : www.itatube.org

INTERNET RESOURCES

www.tripadvisor.com

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J uly /A ugust 2007