International Update

My father once mused that Australia and New Zealand exist so the rest of the world has something to envy.

Croatia is the newest country to join the European Union (EU), which it did on 1 July, 2013. But investors still need to be careful where they tread. Croatia is full of history, but as it enters a new chapter, investors will find themselves surrounded by minefields if they do not stay on their guard.

Site Selection magazine sat down with Atento CEO Alejandro Reynal to learn about the history of the company's massive international expansion of the last two decades as a wholly-owned subsidiary of Telefonica, one of the world’s largest Telecom conglomerates, and what the future holds after the recent acquisition from Bain Capital in late December 2012.

Former Guatemalan President (1996-2000) and current Guatemala City Mayor Álvaro Enrique Arzú Irigoyen addressed a Guatemala Investment Summit on May 30th to encourage investors to consider seriously his metropolitan area the next time they are seeking a location for BPO, manufacturing or other facilities.

Bahrain and banking used to go together. That is not so much the case now. The "bank king" of the Gulf has been dethroned. Before the global financial crisis and the Arab Spring, Bahrain was the banking and finance centre for the Gulf and the wider Middle East. The United Arab Emirates has now become the go-to location for many activities in this sector.

The following is a compilation highlighting unique initiatives taking place in every South American country, each with its own unique approach to common challenges faced by investment promotion agencies. Examples range from tactical — such as the Peruvian approach to place branding — to strategic, such as Colombia's effort to improve its image.

Of the five countries attending March's BRICS summit in South Africa, only one could boast a growth rate significantly higher than 5 percent.

Add the importance of the Mexican market itself to companies' lists of reasons to open operations in Mexico.

A vision many years in the making aims to take both sides of the River Mersey's waterfront from myopia to utopia.

Two US companies announced plans in New York in early April to establish operations in Scotland.

The Arab Spring spared The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia the level of protest seen in neighbours such as Bahrain.

The Panama Canal expansion, on target to be completed by 2015, has certainly put Panama and Central America back on the map.

Panama has been considered a logistics center since its discovery in 1513. Its location and native design provide unparalleled and unique geographical advantages. Above all, it has access to two seas: the Atlantic and Pacific oceans are 80 miles away from each other.

Nearshore outsourcing operations usually come to the countries bordering the Caribbean Sea. Historically, this region has been rich in agriculture, minerals and more recently, oil and natural gas.

What if, instead of designing business incubators, accelerators and other science-inflected names for workspace, your whole city was that workshop, custom-designed for exploration, discovery and serendipitous interaction?

In three years time, Botswana will celebrate its fiftieth year of independence. Before it sees another 50, the extensive diamond deposits that have been its source of prosperity will have long run out.

Belgian Prime Minister Elio Di Rupo was able to crow at the World Economic Forum in Davos this year, as his nation reaped a host of honors: Belgium was named the fourth most open economy in the world by Ernst & Young’s Globalization Index, while also coming in fourth among 123 countries in the Conference Board’s annual report on worker productivity.

In the past two years, the dramatic changes in Arab countries have been a primary focus of attention.

New legislation in 2013 could overhaul financial regulation of free zones in the United Arab Emirates, making them even more desirable locations for capital investors.

Vietnam’s inexpensive and productive labor force has oftentimes earned it the title of the ‘Next China’.

Suddenly, the eyes of investors turned toward Mexico, and not because of the violence unleashed by the drug war.