FT LatAm Viva For August 12, 2016

	6:18 AM (1 hour ago)
to me

By John Paul Rathbone  August 12, 2016 The Olympic games, it seems, stop for nobody and nothing – expect perhaps, in one brief moment last week, for an elderly man. There have been shootings in the hills above Rio. The Olympic pool has turned a mysterious shade of green. Matches on Tinder, the hook-up application, have soared among athletes in the Olympic village. Theimpeachment process of Dilma Rousseff, Brazil’s suspended president, moved a step forward after the Senate voted for a full trial – pushing local markets to new highs.  And more sporting records have continued to be smashed, especially in swimming. But for one brief moment on Sunday, Brazilian networks – and no few “beautiful people” elsewhere -- switched their attention from sports to the funeral of Ivo Pitanguy, the world’s best known plastic surgeon, or the “Michelango of the scalpel” as he is sometimes called.  Pitanguy, who helped carry the Olympic torch into the Maracana stadium to start the games and died of a heart attack the day after, was the founding father of the “Brazilian butt lift”.   In Venezuela, meanwhile, the electoral authorities set a timetable which likely means that the opposition initiative to launch a recall referendum to oust President Nicolás Maduro will not happen this year. That means that if Mr Maduro loses the vote, highly likely on current form, the current vice-president would take his place, rather than fresh elections being called. Elsewhere, Donald Trump continued to illustrate just how US politics appears to be increasingly “Latin Americanised”, and why Hispanic voters, who could determine the fate of the US election, so roundly reject him. The Zika virus arrived in Miami, the “business capital of Latin America"; Mexican president Enrique Peña Nieto’s approval ratings continued to fall, not helped by another possible scandal over housing – this time a Miami apartment used by his wife.  And in Colombia, a new poll suggested that a referendum over the on-going peace process could fall short of the votes needed to approve it – and there is no Plan B. It’s not all bad news, though: in a sign of new times, the UK’s new Prime Minister, Theresa May, wrote to Argentine president Mauricio Macri requesting a re-opening of talks about the contested Falklands/Malvinas. Quote of the week “I insist on improving humanity” - Ivo Pitanguy Chart of the week Brazilian markets party like it’s 2009 Other reading Rio: the war of the favelas Mexican first lady’s Florida home owned by potential government contractor Colombia opines about the peace process: Semana poll Emerging Voices The FT/OppenheimerFunds Emerging Voices awards unveil the 2016 shortlist: Collision by Clarissa Campolina, Brazil; Olia by Tania Cattebeke, Paraguay; Impressions of War by Camilo Restrepo, Colombia The week in review Donald Trump evokes Latin America’s old-style strongmen   Familiar swagger and populism turn off Hispanic voters in the US election, writes John Paul Rathbone     The Zika virus — where did it come from and where will it end?   Research is gathering pace as the mosquito-borne disease explodes across Latin America     Trump’s thin skin shows CEOs are not made for politics   Why business leaders tend to make poor politicians     Prospect of recall vote against Maduro recedes in Venezuela   Next step in starting ballot to oust Maduro set to be pushed back by electoral council     Donald Trump hit by dissent from within Republican party   Group of 50 GOP security experts and senator say they will not vote for presidential nominee     Fed’s Powell warns US at risk of being trapped in low growth   Era of weak long-term growth a rising concern for central bank’s board member     Weight of expectation on Next Big Thing can crush opportunity   Brazil has underperformed as reliably as its sports people until recently excelled     Rio Olympics opens with cultural extravaganza   But political intrigue was never far away in 4-hour opening ceremony     The cost of building the 2016 Rio Olympics   R$7.1bn has been spent on building and renovating new facilities for the Games     Rio Olympics 2016: Cybercriminals to target visitors   Experts warn of surge in online attacks around the sporting event