Western oil majors are feeling the pinch from national companies

As recent figures indicate, major Western oil companies such as Royal Dutch Shell, BP, Chevron, ConocoPhillips, and TOTAL are increasingly losing ground to a new breed of competitors. With many of the most lucrative hydrocarbon reserves situated in emerging nations and jealously guarded by national oil and gas companies, could this signal the end for Western domination of the oil industry?

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Valentine's Day: say it with...chocolates

Valentine's is traditionally a day of love and romance, though cynics would call it a money-spinning dream for the producers of flowers and chocolates. Whatever the reasons, chocolate is big business. Datamonitor's Joanne Birtwistle looks at the global popularity of chocolate, for Valentine's and otherwise...<BR /><BR />

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UBS Brazil: crunch time

UBS finally received a banking license and approval to take over Link Investimentos in early 2013 after an arduous two year wait. Now sources at the bank suggest it is cutting non-wealth management staff. 2013 is becoming a crunch year for UBS to cement its local presence.

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Trauma devices: IM nailing set for take-off in Brazil

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Trauma devices: Chinese market to grow 168%

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The biorefineries value chain could be worth $300 billion by 2030, but Europe may miss out

According to the World Economic Forum, the value chain around biorefineries might be worth $300 billion by 2030. Europe is in a uniquely favorable position to capture some of this, but unless it has the political will to do so, Brazil, China, Indonesia and the US are likely to reap the benefits.

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Sustained growth in biofuels rests on government policy support

After a period of slowdown due to the global recession and high feedstock costs, the biofuels market is now showing signs of recovery. However, in key markets, energy companies such as Petrobras, BP, and Shell are still fighting to recover their losses and attract new investments. Government policies are expected to be instrumental in ushering in the next phase of growth in the biofuels industry.

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Sunlover: new "beauty drink" hits the market

Brazilian company Sunlover has launched a beauty drink which is said to improve the drinker's skin and tan. The product is the latest in a line of nutricosmetic food and drink launches to hit the market. However, Nestle's recent decision to remove its nutraceutical brand, Glowelle, from sale, perhaps suggests that these products still have some way to go to achieve consumer acceptance.

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Starbucks: aiming for big bucks

Starbucks looks set to take over McDonald's crown as the most omnipresent corporate brand, with the company planning an ambitious growth strategy in 2007. In some instances, this has prompted complaints that the company is being insensitive about where it locates its shops. However, with quarterly results on target, the investment community is more than happy to see the company thrive.

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Santander: benefiting from the BRIC bounce

The muscular market rallies that have occurred in the domestic stock markets of Brazil, Russia, India and China in 2009 make share sales within these countries an attractive option for capital-hungry international banks. Reports suggest that Santander's Brazil unit is considering the sale of shares in its domestic market, and many more may follow its lead.

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