Interview with Rui Pedro Antunes: “Foreign investors continue to believe in Brazil’s high growth potential”

Economist Roberto Dardis interviews Rui Pedro Antunes, a professional in the retail sector with 25 years of experience in a multinational company in the sector, operating in the European market, North Africa, South America and currently based in Madrid, for a chat. on interest rates, reforms and the economy in general and a vision of how we are seen abroad in economic and political terms.

Roberto Dardis – With interest at 13.75%, would you say that it interferes a lot with investments or does it not interfere?

Rui Antunes – Such high interest rates are clearly a sign that the economy is going through some problems and as such, from an investment point of view, it at least slows down the decision-making process. This is because to invest (in most cases) financing is needed and this is very expensive and then the return on investment requirements are greater but it is more difficult to guarantee compliance. Even so, there are always investment opportunities, but the main problem is the pace at which this is done, not only because of the costs but also because of the uncertainty that this causes in the future.

RD – From zero to 10, what grade would you give on political interference in the economy? And what weight can this intrusion cause the country?

RA – I do not know the reality of everyday life in Brazil, I follow it through the news and through contacts with Brazilian friends, but as a general criterion, I defend that the economy should function as freely as possible, however, it is an obligation of the State / Government that they are fulfilled the basic rules and competition, so any temptation to directly interfere with this mechanic will never be positive, even because this intervention is never a guarantee that things will work better.

In terms of external image, economies that suffer great interference from political entities are necessarily less attractive economies for foreign investors who, when embarking on international projects, seek security in investments, legal and political security and the (exaggerated) non-interventionism of political entities. in economics is clearly a key factor in the decision.

RD – How do you see the current government from the outside?

RA – In reality, Lula’s entry into government was seen with positive expectations, as the image of the Bolsonaro government in many European countries was not the best. It was seen as a government with a democratic deficit, with a (dangerous) alignment with Trump, in which the COVID management was manifestly bad, without wanting to recognize the biggest global pandemic of the last decades and where it was believed that it would be stronger (even due to its military past) and which could be reflected in a great rectitude of governance, ended up also being speckled by some events of corruption. Now Lula and his government have had a start that I consider timid to say the least, that is, they have taken a long time to make decisions (when quick action is required in the face of the current economic crisis) and from a geopolitical point of view, of international relations, it has been quite ambiguous in his speeches and economically the few proposals presented are not clear. However, I believe that it still has room to improve its performance.

RD – What does the foreign investor see in the country to invest here?

RA – At the moment, foreign investors continue to believe in Brazil’s high growth potential, not just from a tourism point of view, but also from the point of view of the real estate market or other types of investment. However, the high economic instability, the lack of clear measures to combat this situation (and we have to see that Brazil maintains its freedom from the point of view of economic and exchange rate policy, something that does not apply in the EU countries), the past cases of corruption and interventionism in very important companies, it generates distrust, apprehension and as I said initially, it can be a reason for these investments to remain on stand by until there is a clearer perspective of the future evolution and the strategic alignments that with other countries in the region or outside it.

RD – Do you think it is safe to invest in Brazil?

RA – I think that despite the points mentioned above, it can still be considered safe to invest in Brazil, and this idea of ​​investment security in the current macroeconomic scenario should be viewed with some caution. But in general, Brazil offers investment opportunities, has potential and is still far (and I hope it does not go the other way) from highly interventionist economies with high legal and fiscal insecurity. In addition, Brazil, like many other countries, has a history of overcoming obstacles that allows it to always see the future with positivism.

We spoke with Rui Pedro Antunes, when he sought with his experiences in the retail market an expectation about our economy and putting his vision of Brazil seen by Europeans.

Reporter, Roberto Dardis