São Paulo – Without much ado, an Arab nation that is not very well known here is entering the daily life of Brazilians. It is Qatar, a country in the Gulf that is rich in oil and gas, which has been making significant acquisitions worldwide and now has shares in some of the most popular organisations in Brazil. Santander is one of the most recent cases. Qatar Holding, a state-owned company in the Arab country, acquired 5% of Santander Brazil in October and has in its hands part of the current accounts of millions of Brazilians.
This was the Qatari acquisition that generated the greatest attention in Brazil, but the Arab country is also indirectly, in national garages and on roads, as Qatar Holding also owns a share in Volkswagen, in Germany, one of the bestselling carmakers in Brazil. From January to October, 479,132 Volkswagen vehicles were licensed in the country, according to information disclosed by the National Association of Vehicle Manufacturers (Anfavea). The same Qatar Holding has a share of Credit Suisse, a Swiss bank that operates in the country.
If investment in the West as a whole is included, the hand of Qatar goes even further, as the company is present in British retail chain J Sainsbury, in bank Barclays and in department store Harrods, of London, all through Qatar Holding, and in luxury hotel chain Fairmont, through Qatari Diar, as well as in several other companies and brands that are well known throughout Europe and the Americas.
The ambassador of Qatar to Brasília, Jamal Nasser Al Bader, explained that the global growth in oil prices was positively reflected in income in Qatar and in the country budget. "But due to fluctuating (oil and gas) prices, the government has been making an effort to invest in the country and abroad to guarantee stability of state income and not make it dependant on just one product," said the diplomat, in an interview to ANBA. He said that investment made by the country is not aimed at rapid gain, but is long-term.
Al Bader stated that the visit of the emir of Qatar, Hamad Bin Khalifa Al Thani, to Brazil early this year, was important for investment. "Recent investment by Qatar in Brazil is a result of this visit," said the ambassador. Qatari interest in Brazil, in fact, is no news. Even great global newspapers, like the Financial Times, have already disclosed such interests. In the first half of this year, an article by the papers showed that a fund from Qatar was prepared to invest US$ 500 million in the real estate sector in Brazil and in Russia.
*Translated by Mark Ament
