Brazil’s time has come. For decades investment professionals have joked that Brazil was “the next big thing… always has been and always will be.” The country is phenomenally rich in commodities and natural resources—it’s the world’s largest exporter of sugar, coffee, beef, poultry, soybeans, and other items. However, until recently Brazil had yet to come anywhere near realizing its potential. From the 1980s until the early ‘90s the country trailed other emerging market economies due to its high inflation, international debts, and political corruption. Brazil tamed the inflation problem with its re-introduction of the Brazilian real in 1994— inflation subsequently plunged from 2,300% to a more reasonable 4% today. The country began denominating its debt in the real soon after, thus avoiding the exchange fluctuations that typically cripple emerging market economies, e.g. if you owe $4 billion in a foreign currency and that ...