Search

This paper examines the ties between Latin America and Asia by moving beyond the homogenisation of the two regions through elevating the importance of opposition to a third party, in this case an "imperialist" and developed North. In contrast to normative analyses based on outmoded conceptions of world history, it proposes an intellectual exercise that problematises the interregional bond by placing the emphasis on heterogeneities rather than broad bush approaches that ignore the complex and diverse national and regional realities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In a world of growing international competition and rivalry between China and the United States, Latin America and the European Union (EU) are caught in the same thorny dilemma. Positioned between these global giants, both regions are facing a retorn to a Westphalian system of nation-states, which undermines their roles as emerging regional players. In view of these new global challenges in Latin America and the EU, this paper uses a qualitative and comparative approach to explore foreign policy discourses on autonomy in both regions. It examines their goals and priorities and assesses the potential regional and interregional consequences. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to analyze the dependence between the Chinese and Market Integrated Latin America (MILA) stock markets.Design/methodology/approach The authors adjust the multivariate probability distribution Variance Gamma (VG) on data yields from the Hang Seng Index (HSI) and MILA and they use the estimated parameters under VG to find a robust estimator of the correlation matrix yields.Findings The degree of dependence between stock indices from China, Peru, Mexico, Colombia and Chile. In addition, the impact of the change in the HSI affects mostly the movements of the selective stock price index (IPSA) and equally affects the index of the Mexican stock exchange (IPC) and Lima Stock Exchange (S&P/BVL). The effect on index of the Colombia Stock Exchange (COLCAP) is not significant.Research limitations/implications Over time there are different structural changes so the time has been restricted to the years 2000-2015, but could extend the analysis to other time periods and sectors of listed companies in the indices.Practical implications The results can guide policy makers to assess the effect of a random crash on stock markets and measure the level of risk from other markets.Social implications The results can generate a greater understanding of the relationship between the stock markets of China and the emerging countries of Latin America.Originality/value The value of this paper is to focus on alternative methodology to calculate the correlation matrix yields and measure the dependence between the Chinese and MILA stock markets. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In 1990, the participation of China in the global imports of Latin America (LAC) was incipient, while by 2019, China had become the second largest supplier of the region. This paper uses a sample of 14 LAC countries, estimates the effects of imports from China on each LAC country's economic growth, and verifies if these effects are evidenced in these countries' non-exporting or exporting sectors. This study proposes a Seemingly-Unrelated-Regressions (SUR) system for each sector. Results show that before China entered into World Trade Organization (WTO), LAC imports from China positively affected the economic growth of some LAC countries. However, beneficiary countries increased after China's adhesion to WTO. Imports from China drive the economic growth of the non-exporting sectors of Argentina, Costa Rica, Ecuador, and El Salvador, the exporting sector of the Dominican Republic, and both sectors of Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Peru, Uruguay, and Venezuela. Except for the Dominican Republic, the countries whose export sectors benefit from China's imports are primary exporting countries. Adverse or null effects are estimated for the rest of the countries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper links China's pattern of infrastructure lending to Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC) with China's own development experience in this regard. It raises the question whether Chinese infrastructure investments in LAC have the potential to promote sustainable development in the region. The paper consists of four parts. Part 1 outlines China's massive domestic infrastructure construction projects as a specific development strategy which has contributed considerably to the country's rapid internal development, but has simultaneously given rise to complex dynamics of social and environmental risk. Part 2 assesses the strategies involved in China's infrastructure investment in LAC. Part 3 identifies key actors involved in China-LAC infrastructure cooperation and how they relate to different ways of financing infrastructure projects. Part 4 focuses on policy guidelines for managing the social and environmental risks of infrastructure projects. The paper concludes that more research, more capacity-building, and new forms of multinational development cooperation are needed to strengthen the social and environmental policies associated with China's infrastructure investment in LAC countries, to help uphold existing social and environmental standards, and to extend project benefits more effectively to local communities and people. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article tries to analyse the roles played by three categories of Chinese actors (the state, enterprises and quasi-government organizations) involved in China's engagement in Latin America to develop economic ties with the region. The first section focuses on the role of the state (the Chinese government) which has maintained a strong focus on the 'top-down-design' in Sino-Latin American economic cooperation by issuing a set of policies and undertaking a number of practical measures. The second part of the paper analyses the role of Chinese enterprises including both state-owned and private ones by analysing two cases of Chinese enterprises which on the one hand, implement government policies and on the other sometimes act as pioneers. In the last section, through the case study on the China Council for the Promotion of International Trade (CCPIT) which is one of the few quasi-government organizations involved in China's foreign economic cooperation and also, without doubt, one of the most influential. Its role as platform for economic cooperation has been acknowledged by the 'top' (Chinese goverenment) and the 'bottom' (enterprises) in China and by Chinese enterprises and their counterparts in Latin America. The paper shows that none of the Chinese actors can take the place of the other in the economic cooperation between China and Latin America; instead, the roles of the three different categories of Chinese actors are complementary. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the past two decades, China has become a strategic economic partner for both Latin American and African nations. China's economic global relevance is translating via its "Belt and Road Initiative (BRI)" into massive amounts of foreign trade, Foreign Direct Investment (FDI), loans, and aid for both regions. Recently, China has added a national security and defense dimension to its BRI relationship with both regions. China's global strategic economic, geopolitical, and global defense goals are being expressed in its global "Road and Belt" power initiatives and strategies. This paper explores an additional dimension of China's BRI initiative: its role in both regions' defense industries and national security environments. China is increasingly using its trade and investment leverage with both regions to unbalance their defense choices and strategic defense relationships. China's increasing interactions with African and Latin American countries poses a number of geopolitical implications for both the United States and Western European countries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Online Journal Mundo Asia Pacífico is the property of Universidad EAFIT and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Why do leftist governments in Latin America prefer building relationships with China rather than with the U.S., particularly in the twenty-first century? This paper examines the nature of the interrelationship between the U.S. and Latin America, and that between China and Latin America, and argues that the embedded political and ideological aspects are key factors to consider when answering the question, albeit in a prevailing capitalism-oriented world economy. This has been evident in the historical trajectory of China’s relationship with Latin America, which has evolved in a manner quite different from the way in which the U.S. has interacted with Latin America. While this paper acknowledges that economic factors are more important in shaping the nature of relationships among nation-states, this research explores the extent to which the elites' individual levels of perception and their embedded ideological orientation towards the third party plays a critical role in guiding the interaction which they carry out among themselves. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines the sources of economic growth for a group of Latin American countries in relation to their export performance in China. The analytical framework is based on an extended normalized quadratic profit function. The ensuing econometric results confirm that a favorable export record with China represents a positive source of growth for Latin America. However, it also creates long-run dependability conditions in terms of reduced prices and thinner profits that weaken its growth capacity. Latin American countries must seek product diversification away from their current commodity base and aggressively climb up the value chain to remain competitive worldwide. Managerial Relevance: identify the sources of economic growth for a group of Latin American countries in relation to their export performance in China; the weakness of this economic growth model; how to seek product diversification away from their current commodity base with emphasis on value chain. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Latin America is a critical region for analyzing China's economic statecraft. Following the Monroe doctrine, Latin America has long been seen as part of the sphere of U.S. influence. For the purpose of studying the effectiveness of China's economic statecraft I will focus on two countries that stand on opposite extremes: Brazil and Mexico. Both countries happened to be important target states (strategic partners) of China's economic statecraft in the region, albeit for different political and strategic goals. In this paper I will compare the different domestic political and economic conditions, interests and institutions in these two countries to explain why China has made greater progress in projecting its economic power through trade and investment to pursue its political goals with Brazil, but has not succeeded in Mexico. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

INTRODUCTION Carbapenem-resistant Acinetobacter baumannii is a complex health problem, causing difficulties in clinical-therapeutic management worldwide. It is of particular concern in Latin America, the Caribbean and China, where it is an emerging health problem. Carbapenemases produced by these organisms inactivate carbapenem antibiotics. Monitoring circulating genotypes' geographic dispersion contributes to more effective control measures. However, exhaustive studies on carbapenem-resistant A. baumannii are scarce. OBJECTIVES Study the production of carbapenemases in clinical isolates of A. baumannii resistant to carbapenem anti-biotics and the geographic distribution of the sequences circulating in China, Latin America and the Caribbean. DATA ACQUISITION We followed PRISMA indications. We carried out a systematic search in Pubmed, BVS and CKNI on papers on A. baumannii and carbapenemases published during 2015-2020 in English, Spanish and Chinese, and selected 29 cross-sectional studies that met the search criteria. Studies were evaluated using JBI Critical Appraisal tools, and quantitative data were collated for meta-analysis using the Metaprop library in Stata15. DEVELOPMENT OXA-type carbapenemases were detected in all studies; among A. baumannii resistant to carbapenem antibiotics, predominant types were OXA-23, OXA-24, OXA-54 and OXA-72; metallobetalactamases were identified less frequently than OXA carbapenemases. Only one clinical isolate producer of Class A carbapenemases (KPC) was identi-fied in Colombia. In total, 41 sequence types were identified; in Latin America and the Caribbean the most common types were: ST79, ST25, ST1 and ST15; in China, the sequences ST195, ST208, ST191, ST368 and ST369 were the most prevalent. ST2 was found in both regions. CONCLUSIONS The most prevalent carbapenemases and sequence types vary by region, indicating different ancestral strains. Microbiological surveillance, antibiotic use optimization, adequate infection treatment and timely control strategies are essential for carbapenem-resistant A. baumannii prevention and control in geographies such as Latin America, the Caribbean and China where such resistance is an emerging health problem. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

One of the most prominent trends in Latin America in the 2000s has been the proliferation of bilateral free trade agreements (FTAs) across the Pacific basin. Beginning with the path-breaking Chile-Korea FTA in 2004 up to the Costa Rica-Singapore FTA in 2013, the past decade has seen the negotiation of twenty-two cross-Pacific accords. China, too, has jumped on to the cross-Pacific FTA bandwagon, including its negotiation of separate bilateral FTAs with Chile (2006), Peru (2009), and Costa Rica (2011). This paper analyzes the origins, content, and preliminary outcomes of these three China-Latin America FTAs. The findings are threefold: 1) in contrast with other cross-Pacific FTAs, which include at least one developed country, the three FTAs analyzed in this paper constitute "south-south" FTAs; yet' in contrast with other south-south FTAs, these three China-Latin America accords approximate WTO+ standards vis-a-vis the World Trade Organization (WTO) and its new trade agenda (services, investment, and intellectual property rights); 2) although the motives for negotiating these developingdeveloping country accords varied, on the part of China and the countries themselves, this did not disrupt the march toward WTO+ status; and 3) while all three of these FTAs elude standard theoretical explanations for the negotiation of bilateral FTAs, the three Latin American countries do share similar reform trajectories and institutional affinities, which sheds light on the decision and capacity of each to negotiate a bilateral FTA with China. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Revista Enfoques: Ciencia Política y Administración Pública is the property of Universidad Central de Chile and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

This paper examines China-Latin America relations through the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States (CELAC) in the 2011-2018 period. In this context, the main perspectives on integration and regionalism are discussed, and CELAC is shown to possess the characteristics of a regional body. It is proposed that the relationship China seeks through this body can be explained by its interest in institutionalising a mechanism for rapprochement with Latin America and the Caribbean. It is noted that CELAC is seen by China as a strategic vehicle that allows it to engage bilaterally with various countries and develop an economic strategy under structurally asymmetric conditions. However, its institutional nature has prevented it from serving these interests. As per the methodology, documentary and qualitative data analysis is made using the systematisation of an unpublished database. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

What led to the boom of Chinese development cooperation in Latin America? This article provides a systematic analysis of China's foreign behavior, motives, and policies regarding development cooperation toward the region between 2000 and 2014. I propose a comparative framework that defines Chinese development cooperation as a tool of economic diplomacy. Drawing on empirical evidence from AidData's Global Chinese Official Finance Dataset and Chinese white papers on foreign aid, the findings evidence that China was motivated by multiple and conjunctural factors in providing development cooperation. In the realm of theory, the article contributes to the literature on economic statecraft—filling in gaps in understanding the relationship between economics and politics. Empirically, it provides a set of tools for understanding the important role that development cooperation plays in a nation's statecraft. Regarding Chinese foreign policy studies, it offers insight into the financial dimension of China's international economic relations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

China's embrace of a comprehensive and aggressive economic statecraft as part of its grand strategy indicates a paradigm change in its foreign policy. This change has captured scholarly attention – a growing body of research on China's economic statecraft has emerged in recent years. This special topic presents a fresh selection of four research essays examining China's economic statecraft practiced in a wide range of countries and regions in the world, including Latin America, Africa, Europe, Canada, and New Zealand. Collectively, these essays explore two important questions: (1) How successful has China's economic statecraft been? (2) How do domestic variables (e.g., domestic politics, political institutions, interests, and public opinion) of the target states (in which China practices economic statecraft) affect the outcome of the Chinese strategies? [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study analysed the association between discrimination and satisfaction with life (SWL) in migrant groups by investigating whether different types of social support (SS; emotional, instrumental, and informational) and networks (family, immigrant and native friends, neighbours, and the community) buffer the negative effects of discrimination on SWL among migrant men and women from different backgrounds. Participants were 631 migrants from Latin America and China residing in Malaga (Spain). We identified behaviour patterns that suggest that SS has different effects on men and women from the same place of origin and similar effects on women and men from different places of origin. In conclusion, the main differences in the effects of SS as a buffer mechanism are not determined by cultural factors. It is more likely that they are determined by differential gender-role socialization, which would lead women to positively value social support., (© 2020 Wiley Periodicals LLC.)

Objectives: The International Collaboration for a Life Course Approach to Reproductive Health and Chronic Disease Events (InterLACE) project is a global research collaboration that aims to advance understanding of women's reproductive health in relation to chronic disease risk by pooling individual participant data from several cohort and cross-sectional studies. The aim of this paper is to describe the characteristics of contributing studies and to present the distribution of demographic and reproductive factors and chronic disease outcomes in InterLACE.Study Design: InterLACE is an individual-level pooled study of 20 observational studies (12 of which are longitudinal) from ten countries. Variables were harmonized across studies to create a new and systematic synthesis of life-course data.Main Outcome Measures: Harmonized data were derived in three domains: 1) socio-demographic and lifestyle factors, 2) female reproductive characteristics, and 3) chronic disease outcomes (cardiovascular disease (CVD) and diabetes).Results: InterLACE pooled data from 229,054 mid-aged women. Overall, 76% of the women were Caucasian and 22% Japanese; other ethnicities (of 300 or more participants) included Hispanic/Latin American (0.2%), Chinese (0.2%), Middle Eastern (0.3%), African/black (0.5%), and Other (1.0%). The median age at baseline was 47 years (Inter-quartile range (IQR): 41-53), and that at the last follow-up was 56 years (IQR: 48-64). Regarding reproductive characteristics, half of the women (49.8%) had their first menstruation (menarche) at 12-13 years of age. The distribution of menopausal status and the prevalence of chronic disease varied considerably among studies. At baseline, most women (57%) were pre- or peri-menopausal, 20% reported a natural menopause (range 0.8-55.6%) and the remainder had surgery or were taking hormones. By the end of follow-up, the prevalence rates of CVD and diabetes were 7.2% (range 0.9-24.6%) and 5.1% (range 1.3-13.2%), respectively.Conclusions: The scale and heterogeneity of InterLACE data provide an opportunity to strengthen evidence concerning the relationships between reproductive health through life and subsequent risks of chronic disease, including cross-cultural comparisons. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Revista de la CEPAL is the property of United Nations Publications and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Objectives To compare demographic and clinical characteristics of patients with axial SpA (axSpA) across geographic regions. Methods Patients With Axial Spondyloarthritis: Multicountry Registry of Clinical Characteristics (PROOF) is an observational study that enrolled recently diagnosed (≤1 year) axSpA patients fulfilling the Assessment of SpondyloArthritis international Society classification criteria from rheumatology clinical practices in 29 countries across six geographic regions. Demographics and disease-related parameters were collected. Here we present baseline data for patients who were classified as radiographic axSpA (r-axSpA) or non-radiographic axSpA (nr-axSpA) confirmed by central reading. Results Of the 2170 patients enrolled, 1553 were classified based on central evaluation of sacroiliac radiographs [r-axSpA: 1023 (66%); nr-axSpA: 530 (34%)]. Patients with nr-axSpA had a significantly higher occurrence of enthesitis (40% vs 33%), psoriasis (10% vs 5%) and IBD (4% vs 2%) vs r-axSpA patients. Significant differences in axSpA characteristics were observed between geographic regions. The highest occurrence of peripheral arthritis (60%), enthesitis (52%) and dactylitis (12%) was in Latin America, and the lowest was in Canada (9%, 9% and 2%, respectively). The occurrence of uveitis and psoriasis was highest in Canada (18% and 14%, respectively) and lowest in China (6% and <1%, respectively). IBD was highest in Arabia (21%), and no cases were observed in China. In multivariable analysis adjusted for factors potentially affecting peripheral and extramusculoskeletal manifestations, geographic regions still exhibited significant differences in frequencies of uveitis (P  < 0.01), psoriasis (P  < 0.0001) and peripheral arthritis (P  < 0.0001). Conclusion The multinational PROOF study of axSpA patients showed significant regional differences in peripheral and extramusculoskeletal manifestations of SpA, which could be considered in management guidelines and clinical trials. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

One of the most decisive ways in which the global economy and power relations were transformed at dawn of the twenty-first century was the rise of China as a major power, as well as the consequent influence the country has been able to exercise over peripheral nations. Although the majority of administrations in Latin America have rejected the policies once hailed by the Washington Consensus, it is striking that they have largely accepted a new system of asymmetrical relations with another major world power, which is fostering the reprimarization of the productive structure in Latin American economies. Thus, beginning with the case of Argentina, this paper explores the path to what is now known as the Beijing Consensus, with an emphasis on a characterization based on the analysis provided below. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An introduction is presented in which the editor discusses various topics within the issue which includes relationship between China and Latin American countries, Chinese Communist Party (CCP) and China's foreign relations.

Most scholars and policy makers classify the motivation behind China's global economic activity as an effort to project soft power or to exercise "extractive diplomacy" by locking up natural resources across the globe. In this paper we argue that China, through its state financial institutions and firms, is also significantly motivated by simply commercial reasons. To shed light on this debate, we examine the extent to which China's policy banks provide finance to sovereign governments in Latin America. We find that Chinese policy banks now provide more finance to Latin American governments each year than do the World Bank and Inter-American Development Bank (IDB). Indeed, the large loan size, high interest rates and focus on industry and infrastructure of Chinese finance has less in common with these international financial institutions (IFIs) and more in common with the private sovereign bond market. In this way, Chinese finance appears primarily commercial in nature. Chinese banks offer slightly lower interest rates than the private market, but these are not necessarily concessional subsidies to support a political agenda. The Chinese banks are exposed to less risk because they tie their loans to equipment purchase requirements and oil purchase contracts. Through these risk-lowering arrangements, Chinese banks can profit by lending to countries that have been priced out of the sovereign debt market. While it can be difficult to distinguish between the three types of economic statecraft outlined above, we argue that commercial profit is also a major force behind China's economic statecraft that has been largely overlooked. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Revista de la CEPAL is the property of United Nations Publications and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Revista de la CEPAL is the property of United Nations Publications and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Latin American Policy is the property of Wiley-Blackwell and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

We investigate the intricate relation between corruption and income inequality in China based on provincial panel data of 1996–2014. Our analysis shows that lower corruption is associated with higher income inequality. This seemingly counter-intuitive result, however, is consistent with findings from countries with a large informal sector, particularly those in Latin America. Institutional reform reduces corruption but also imposes additional costs on the participants in the informal sector. The latter effect, at least initially, exacerbates inequality, giving rise to the negative correlation. After the informal sector in China is considered, that negative relation vanishes. Moreover, when reform is accompanied by measures protecting the poor (such as those taken in the agricultural reform occurring in early 2000s), its perverse impact on inequality is significantly reduced. Lastly, public investment is positively associated with income inequality as the former, generally financed by taxation, may transfer income from the taxpayers to the business elites. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Expatriate sport coaches were a phenomenon of the export of sport talent during the Cold War and were a strategy of sport exchange in public diplomacy. The Republic of China (ROC) coach exchange plan in Latin America was influenced by the United States and the ROC's on-going opposition to the Chinese Communist Party. Analysis of archival documents regarding expatriate coaches focused on: requirements for table tennis coaches in Latin American partner nations; the programme's objectives and implementation process; and the appeal of sport coaches as agents of soft power. The ROC sport coaches exchange programme had three objectives. First, they promoted Latin American people's understanding of the nationality, culture and system of Free China to prevent the penetration of communist ideas. Second, they set up a channel of trust communication through the friendship between Taiwanese coaches with Latin American officials, interest groups and athletes to drive the ROC policies. Third, they developed diplomatic support for the ROC government. The personalities, values, words and deeds, professional knowledge and skills of Taiwanese coaches were turned into desirable outcomes by increasing the host country's sports participation and competition performance. However, the policy itself and the limitations of the ROC's hard power led to the undesirable outcomes of the coach exchange plan. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article focuses on China's involvement in Latin America and the Caribbean Energy Sector. Topics inlcude Latin America and the Caribbean countries (LAC countries) suffer from inadequate infrastructure and has affected by the distance between them and developed North, China has proposed a solution for building infrastructure which making shorter the extension of the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) to the LAC region, and the BRI has the potential to reduce world trade costs and shipping time.

There are three positions about the impact of outward foreign direct investment (FDI) from China on the policies of Latin American and Caribbean (LAC) countries: the "Wealth is Power" camp, which associates political power with Chinese economic lures; the "Conditionalist" camp, which contends the international and domestic economic and political context determines the specific political effect of Chinese outward FDI (OFDI); and the "Politics is Power" camp, which believes no dramatic political changes have resulted from the economic stimuli of Chinese OFDI (COFDI) and associated economic lures. Case studies herein on Brazil and China, Argentina and China, Ecuador and China, and the Caribbean and China support the Conditionalist camp, albeit to differing degrees and for different reasons. Case studies herein on COFDI in Argentina and in Colombia also deepen our knowledge about the drivers of COFDI. They challenge those asserting that COFDI in LAC is driven purely by political motives. This piece also reviews and critiques the state of the literature on COFDI in LAC and suggests a pathway for moving to the next level. It specifically recommends researchers work to cumulate knowledge by asking similar kinds of questions across cases, exploit theory, and work on variable conceptualization and operationalization. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Policymakers and analysts frame China's growing investment in Latin America and the Caribbean as new forms of South-South cooperation. This study situates China's investment treaties with Latin America in the context of South-South cooperation and measures their relative effects on China's foreign direct investment (FDI) in the region. Macro-level econometric studies on the relationship between investment treaties and FDI are inconclusive due to methodological limitations, notably, studies must account for qualitative distinctions between political and economic conditions, bilateral relations, the strength of investor rights, and the sector of FDI flows. Based on China's unique institutional characteristics, I use firm-level data and separate econometric models for public and private firms to measure the effect of China's investment treaties on China's Outward Foreign Direct Investment (OFDI). I find that China's investment treaties with Latin America do not promote China's OFDI to the region. I conclude that for China-Latin America investment treaties to become instruments of South-South cooperation they must include commitments to bilateral and regional investment institutions. Keywords in this article include investment treaties, investment and development, South-South Cooperation, bilateral investment treaties, international political economy, trade and industrial policy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Carta Internacional is the property of Associacao Brasileira de Relacoes Internacionais and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Despite the emergence of a rich literature on the rise of China in Latin America (LAC) since 2000, we are still grappling with this phenomenon. In this article we seek to theorize this expanding South-South relationship from two vantage points. First, from the perspective of China, we argue that, by necessity, the PRC has had to internationalize its development strategy in order to compensate for its serious natural resource deficit, feed the world's largest domestic population, and fuel the soon-to-be largest economy in the world. LAC has been just one slice of China's ‘go out’ strategy. Our second perspective probes the effect of China's entry into the region. Through the lens of development economics, we identify three separate political economy scenarios that have been accentuated within those countries that have the strongest economic ties with China. We rely on measures of institutional performance and macro-economic trends to illustrate the variable effects of China on LAC. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The current study is a content analysis of international economic news about Chinese outward foreign direct investment in Latin American countries from corresponding Latin American newspapers. We studied the portrayal of Chinese outward foreign direct investment among 14 different Latin American newspapers. The study aims at illustrating differences between newspaper portrayals of Chinese outward foreign direct investment in the region, with a special focus on the possible factors that influence the editorial selection of relevant news frames on international economic news. We found that the use of conflict and economic consequence frames corresponds to the editorial distinct focuses on either geopolitical interpretations or economic interpretations of international economic news in the case of Chinese outward foreign direct investment in Latin America. We also found attitudes and perspectives adopted in the portrayals are different both on a national basis and on an editorial basis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Tuberculosis (TB) remains a major health challenge in South Africa and the condition in humans has been well researched and documented. However, investigations on the circulating Mycobacterium tuberculosis complex (MTBC) strains from cattle in the Eastern Cape Province of South Africa are insufficient. This study delineated the diversity of MTBC isolates from cows’ lymph nodes. A total of 162 MTBC isolates, collected over a one-year period from cattle lymph nodes from two abattoirs, were submitted to spoligotyping and 12 MIRU-VNTR typing. The spoligotyping results were matched with isolates in the universal spoligotyping database (SITVIT2). Our study identified 27 spoligotype patterns, with 10 shared types assigned to five lineages: the East-Asian (Beijing) was predominant, 17.9%, and East-Asian (Microti) and Latin-American-Mediterranean S were the least detected with 0.6%. Spoligotyping showed a higher clustering rate of 82.1%, with the lowest being the Hunter-Gaston Diversity Index (HGDI) of 0.485; 12 MIRU-VNTR resulted in a clustering rate of 64.8%, showing a higher HGDI of 0.671. The results of this study show a high diversity of MTBC strains in the Eastern Cape Province and clustering rate, which indicates ongoing transmission in the province. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: empirical evidence from high-income countries suggests that self-rated health (SRH) is useful as a brief and simple outcome measure in public health research. However, in many low- and middle-income countries (LMIC) there is a lack of evaluation and the cross-cultural validity of SRH remains largely untested. This study aims to explore the prevalence of SRH and its association with mortality in older adults in LMIC in order to cross-culturally validate the construct of SRH. Methods: population-based cohort studies including 16,940 persons aged ≥65 years in China, India, Cuba, Dominican Republic, Peru, Venezuela, Mexico and Puerto Rico in 2003. SRH was assessed by asking 'how do you rate your overall health in the past 30 days' with responses ranging from excellent to poor. Covariates included socio-demographic characteristics, use of health services and health factors. Mortality was ascertained through a screening of all respondents until 2007. Results: the prevalence of good SRH was higher in urban compared to rural sites, except in China. Men reported higher SRH than women, and depression had the largest negative impact on SRH in all sites. Without adjustment, those with poor SRH showed a 142% increase risk of dying within 4 years compared to those with moderate SRH. After adjusting for all covariates, those with poor SRH still showed a 43% increased risk. Conclusion: our findings support the use of SRH as a simple measure in survey settings to identify vulnerable groups and evaluate health interventions in resource-scares settings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The long neoliberal night that descended on Latin America since the military coup against Salvador Allende in Chile in 1973, began to be reversed with the arrival of Hugo Chavez to the presidency of Venezuela in 1998 inaugurating with it the Pink Tide of progressive and radical governments in the region. Pink Tide governments undertook a steady reversal of neoliberalism that included the nationalization of natural resources, poverty eradication, economic growth, social inclusion, redistribution of income, and much more. Simultaneously, most of the region began to orient itself commercially toward Asia, especially China, in a mutually beneficial relationship that through growing trade and investment links brought the two sides closer together in an unprecedented development for a region that had hitherto been firmly under the economic and political hegemony of the United States. Thus, political developments and economic trends seemed to guarantee the inexorable emergence of a new world geopolitical architecture within which Latin America would drastically rearrange its institutional and structural links with the United States, bringing about what many Latin American political leaders proclaim as the region's "second economic independence." The growing trade, commercial, and political links between Latin America and China, especially the incorporation of Brazil to the BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa), inaugurated the rise of new institutional, political, trade, and commercial structures leading the region to seek to link its economic development to the ever expanding economic weight of the Asiatic giant. Though these highly positive developments have not quite come to a halt, they have been substantially complicated by the negative impact of the world economic crisis since 2008 and the US-led conservative, neoliberal political offensive that has already taken its toll in the victory of Macri in Argentina, the impeachment process against Dilma Rousseff and the installation of the hard-line neoliberal interim government of Michel Temer in Brazil, and the severe economic difficulties faced by Bolivarian government of Nicolas Maduro in Venezuela, just to mention the most important ones. This article seeks to examine the huge potential of Latin America's growing relations with China. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Revista EAN is the property of Universidad EAN and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

If one interprets China's sizable rise in Latin America as an unprecedented phenomenon, it follows that the concurrent story of declining U.S. influence in the region is an event hastily acknowledged at best and ignored at worst. In this article, we ask whether Chinese economic statecraft in Latin America is related to the declining U.S. hegemonic influence in the region and explore how. To do so we analyze foreign direct investments, bank loans, and international trade from 2003 to 2014, when China became a major player in the region. We use data from 21 Latin American countries, and find that an inversely proportional relationship exists between the investments made by Chinese state-owned enterprises (SOEs), bank loans, manufacturing exports, and the U.S. hegemonic influence exerted in the region. In other words, Beijing has filled the void left by a diminished U.S. presence in the latter's own backyard. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Generally, women are less likely than men to disclose their HIV status. This analysis examined the relationship between HIV disclosure and (1) perceived barriers to care and (2) quality of life (QoL) for women with HIV. The ELLA (EpidemioLogical study to investigate the popuLation and disease characteristics, barriers to care, and quAlity of life for women living with HIV) study enrolled HIV-positive women aged ≥18 years. Womencompleted the 12-item Barriers to Care Scale (BACS) questionnaire. QoL was assessed using the Health Status Assessment. BACS and QoL were stratified by dichotomized HIV disclosure status (to anyone outside the healthcare system). Multilevel logistic regression analysis was used to identify factors associated with disclosure. Of 1945 patients enrolled from Latin America, China, Central/Eastern Europe, and Western Europe/Canada between July 2012 and September 2013, 1929 were included in the analysis (disclosed, n = 1724; nondisclosed, n = 205). Overall, 55% of patients lived with a husband/partner, 53% were employed, and 88% were receiving antiretroviral therapy. Patients who were with a serodiscordant partner were more likely to disclose ( p = 0.0003). China had a disproportionately higher percentage of participants who did not disclose at all (nearly 30% vs. <15% for other regions). Mean BACS severity scores for medical/psychological service barriers and most personal resource barriers were significantly lower for the disclosed group compared with the nondisclosed group ( p ≤ 0.02 for all). Compared with the disclosed group, the nondisclosed group reported statistically significantly higher ( p ≤ 0.03) BACS item severity scores for 8 of the 12 potential barriers to care. The disclosed group reported better QoL. Overall, HIV nondisclosure was associated with more severe barriers to accessing healthcare by women with HIV. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Revista Criterio Libre is the property of Revista Criterio Libre and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Inter-regionalism refers to regular forms of cooperation between regions or actors from different regions and is a result of the parallel phenomena of globalization and regionalism. Inter-regional links are rapidly developing all around the world and form a new level of global governance. Though originally inter-regionalism typically connected the actors of the so-called Triad, today emerging economies and developing regions are more active and visible participants of inter-regional cooperation. The article examines the perspectives and limitations of inter-regional relations between China and Latin America as a new dimension of deepening Sino-Latin American relations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

China has over the last two decades been committed to creating a strategic partnership with Latin American states by persistently extending its economic and political involvement in the continent. China's efforts in this regard reflect not only its desire to intensify its economic cooperation and political relations with nations in Latin America, but also its strategic goals of creating its own sphere of influence in the region and enhancing its 'hard' and 'soft' power in order to elevate China's status at the systemic level. With access to Latin American markets, resources and investment destinations, China may sustain its economic and social progress that bases its long cherished dream of restoring its past glory of fuqiang (wealth and power) and rise as a global power capable of reshaping the current world system. The enormous economic benefits deriving from their economic cooperation and trade may persuade Latin American nations to accept the basic premise of China's economic strategy: that China's rise is not a threat, but an opportunity to gain wealth and prosperity. This will help China gain more 'soft' power in and leverage over its economic partners in Latin America, and thereby help it to rise in the global power hierarchy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Revista de la CEPAL is the property of United Nations Publications and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

The recent expansion of China's Belt and Road Initiative-related commercial dealmaking into Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC) is unlikely to bring fundamental change to China-LAC economic relations. It may, however, catalyse a more volatile LAC-China-US geopolitical relationship. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]