If you throw all the products we buy and the services we use in one basket, then add up the price tag, that's the Gross Domestic Product, which is the primary metric economists use to assess the economic health of a country or region.

The easy part of calculating GDP is the calculation itself: C+I+G+(X-M)=GDP. Got it? No? Well, add Consumption, Investment by companies, Government purchases, and then take the product of eXports (calling it 'E' would lack sexiness) minus iMports ('I' was taken). Viola! GDP.

Still don't get it? Well, knowing the components helps. Consumption is the biggest component, and it's a tally of the cost of all the goods and services we buy. Investment is what companies spend on the real assets they own, plus the value of the inventory that we haven't gobbled up through consumption. Government purchases are what the Feds pay money for (whether it be highways or fighter jets, though big social programs, like welfare, aren't counted). And then we calculate the difference between the goods and services we¿re sending to other countries and the stuff we're bringing in.

Good. That explains it, except there's a catch. Inflation has a habit of distorting the numbers, so economists talk about either Nominal GDP or Real GDP. In fact, Real GDP isn't necessarily "real" for most folks, since it takes any inflation out. Nominal GDP includes the effects of inflation. (There's something called the implicit price deflator which is a calculation using the two, but we'll spare you the details.)

So, now that we know GDP, why do we want to? Well, it's good to compare different markets. And watching the trend shows whether a given economy is growing (good), stagnating (not so good), or shrinking (very not so good). When GDP goes down two quarters in a row, we're officially in a recession.

For the record, GDP is released at the end of each month, with most reporting ¿preliminary¿ data for the previous month. But you won't get final GDP numbers for the fourth quarter of a year until the very end of the first quarter of the next year. After all, it's not an easy number to calculate.

Home / Markets / Industries / Industrials

Thursday, July 03, 2008

Vale Announces Global Offering

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Comtex

RIO DE Jan, Brazil, Jul 3, 2008 (Canada NewsWire via COMTEX) ----Companhia Vale do Rio Doce (Vale) announces that, subject to market conditions and receipt of final approval from the Brazilian securities regulator (Comissao de Valores Mobiliarios), it plans to launch a global offering of up to 256,926,766 common shares and 164,402,799 preferred shares (not including any exercise of the underwriters over-allotment option) on or near July 4, 2008. The global offering will consist of a registered offering in Brazil and an international offering, which will include a registered offering in the United States. Investors in the international offering may elect to receive their shares in the form of American Depositary Shares (ADSs). The closings of the Brazilian offering and the international offering will be conditioned upon each other. Further information about the offers will be contained in the offering documents.

Existing shareholders of Vale that are resident in Brazil will have the right to subscribe for shares in the Brazilian offering on a priority basis. Our principal shareholder, Valepar, has decided to subscribe the number of common shares required to maintain its proportionate interest in our common shares following our capital increase.

As previously announced, Vale will use the net proceeds of this offering for general corporate purposes, which may include financing its program of organic growth based on its US$59 billion investment plan, strategic acquisitions and increased financial flexibility.

In connection with this offering, Vale has applied to list and trade its common and preferred ADSs on Euronext Paris. Vale's common shares and preferred shares are listed on the Sao Paulo Stock Exchange, and its common ADSs and the preferred ADSs are listed on the New York Stock Exchange.

 << Credit Suisse Securities (USA) LLC is acting as lead underwriter. >>

Vale has an effective registration statement on file with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. If the offering proceeds, copies of the preliminary prospectus supplement for the international offering, when available, may be obtained from Credit Suisse Prospectus Department, One Madison Avenue, New York, NY, 10010, +1 800 221 1037, or by visiting EDGAR on the SEC Web site at www.sec.gov. Before you invest, you should read the preliminary prospectus supplement and other documents that Vale has filed and will file with the SEC for more complete information about Vale and the offering.

Rio Doce

SOURCE: Companhia Vale do Rio Doce

Roberto Castello Branco, roberto.castello.branco@vale.com, or Alessandra Gadelha, alessandra.gadelha@vale.com, or
   Patricia Calazans, patricia.calazans@vale.com, or Theo Penedo, theo.penedo@vale.com, or Marcus Thieme, marcus.thieme@vale.com,
   or Tacio Neto, tacio.neto@vale.com, all of Vale, +011-55-21-3814-4540 Web Site: http://www.cvrd.com.br http://www.vale.com

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