Shares of US aluminum giant Alcoa Inc. (AA) dropped 6% in after-hours trade and closed at $17.45 following the fourth quarter and full year 2009 earnings announcement on Monday.  In the fourth quarter of 2009, Alcoa posted a modest profit of 1 cent, missing the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 5 cents and market expectations of 6 cents. Accounting for charges on restructuring and special items of $275 million, or 28 cents per share, Alcoa reported a loss of 27 cents, down from a net loss of $1.16 per share in the same quarter of 2008.  Higher aluminum prices drove an 18% sequential increase in the top-line to $5.4 billion in the fourth quarter. The quarter saw Alcoa post a 9% increase in the realized price of alumina partially offset by higher energy prices and a weak dollar. However, weak demand from end-markets including aerospace, commercial building ...

Robert Amsterdam has just published a translation of an opinion article from O Estado de São Paulo on The Huffington Post.

There is great merit in Brazil's ability to maintain friendly relations with so many different nations of different values. The South-South diplomacy, pioneered by the Lula government, should continue long into the future, and help to redefine a multipolar approach to global affairs. This tactic, however, has its limits. When taken to an extreme, there are high costs.

Brazil is better than that, and deserves much more. Its ambitious view toward the future is not compatible with the tolerance of outright tyranny on her borders. It's decision time: one can't have a foot in the 21st century while maintaining retrograde views.

Sabesp (SBS) is seeing revenue growth as it expands its infrastructure. The stock is cheap. SBS is trading at just 6.8x forward earnings.

Company Description

Sabesp supplies water services and sewage collection services to 60% of the State of Sao Paulo in Brazil. It services 366 out of 645 cities.

Since 2007, Sabesp has been expanding into new services related to environmental sanitation and energy.

From 2009 to 2013, the company expects to spend R$ 8.6 billion to expand infrastructure to cover the entire population of cities it currently services. By 2013 it expects to be treating 100% of water in cities it services.

Zacks Consensus Estimates Rise

Sabesp is scheduled to report third quarter results on Nov 18. Analysts have been bullish about the third quarter and 2009.

The third quarter Zacks Consensus Estimate is up 22 cents to $1.73 in the last 30 days.

The

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The Brazilian Government is undertaking measures to improve exports in the country. Recently, it announced plans of introducing 5,200 micro and small businesses in international trade by 2010.

Having lowered its benchmark interest rate to a record of 9.25%, cutting taxes on goods and having injected around $100 billion into currency markets, the government is trying to encourage exports and improve the economy under present conditions.

However, Gross Domestic Product shrank 0.8% in the first quarter. Moreover, Brazilian exports have fallen in the second quarter of 2009. In the month of April and May, exports of processed steel, iron ore and other metals fell 48% and export of crude and oil derivatives dropped by 51%.

This has hurt the state-run oil giant Petroleo Brasileiro S.A. (PBR), or Petrobras, and Vale do Rio Doce (VALE), one of the largest producers and exporters of iron ore and pellets in

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