Brazil’s policymakers’ fiscal and monetary actions enabled the country to regain its footing in the first half of this year. Leading indicators suggest that the there could be a speedy return to Brazil’s recent growth rates, reports Latin Business Chronicle. (Why this is just the start of the trend).

As the real has picked up its value, other countries and economies are not faring as well. Spain’s economy has lagged most of the other Euro nations, despite the return of investors. That’s despite Banco Santander raising $8 billion – more than three-quarters of which came from international investors – in early October when its local unit made its stock market debut. It was the world’s largest IPO this year. Read more on Spain here.

Brazil’s exports have been strong, thanks to demand from China for soy and iron ore. The improvement is also in part because of improved trade links with Asia and Africa. (Why ties like this are important for future growth.)

With the continued export diversification and active trade policy, along with a large and growing domestic market, the unique structure of Brazil’s economy could keep the country on top. (What else is shifting in Brazil to support economic growth.)

For more stories about Brazil, visit our Brazil category.

• iShares MSCI Brazil Index (NYSEArca: EWZ): up 118.4% year-to-date

• iShares MSCI Spain Index (NYSEArca: EWP): up 39.7% year-to-date

• SPDR S&P China (NYSEArca: GXC): up 64% year-to-date

According to Gary Gordon for ETF Expert, there is a slight discernible difference between the five largest net exporters and net importers as shown in their respective ETF growths.

Net importers’ five-year total % change:

• Vanguard Total U.S. Market (NYSEArca: VTI): 12.8%
• iShares MSCI United Kingdom (NYSEArca: EWU): 10.7%
• iShares MSCI Spain (NYSEArca: EWP): 91.7%
• iShares MSCI France (NYSEArca: EWQ): 35.1%
• The India Fund (NYSE: IFN): 129.4%

Net exporters’ five-year total % change:

• iShares FTSE China 25 Index (NYSEArca: FXI): 173.9%
• iShares MSCI Germany (NYSEArca: EWG): 53.9%
• Central Europe/Russia Fund (NYSE: CEE): 91.3%
• iShares South Korea (NYSEArca: EWY): 90.5%
• iShares MSCI Netherlands (NYSEArca: EWN): 46.3%

The data shows that percentage gains are leaning toward exporters and developing countries, more export-dependent, are producing larger percentage returns.

Gordon makes the distinction that successful investing in seemingly export-type countries is more dependent on overall economic growth and less to do with the large “net exporter” moniker.

For more information on ETF trends, visit our trend following category. Read more of Gary Gordon’s ETF observations at ETF Expert.

Max Chen contributed to this article.

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) projects Spain’s unemployment rate to top off at 20.2% in 2010 after hitting 18% by the end of 2009, according to Barcelona Reporter. The IMF also estimates that the country’s gross national product (GNP) will fall 3.8% this year and diminish 0.7% next year.

The economic adversities afflicting Spain can be traced back to the construction industry, and housing prices are forecast to fall for a minimum of 12 months. For more stories on how the downturn has affected Europe, click here.

The Spanish banking giant Banco Santander, S.A. (NYSE: STD) plans to sell around 16% of its Brazilian operations for $7 billion, accounting for 18% of profit, and the unit was priced around 10% above the price-to-earnings multiples on competitor banks, writes Don Dion for TheStreet.

Potential investors of iShares MSCI Spain Index (NYSEArca: EWP) should note that unemployment, manufacturing and retail data, along with low interest rate mortgage, may elevate risks to investing in EWP, comments Dion. EWP’s good performance so far may be because of the high allocation into financials, with a 46% weighting, and low allocation to materials.

• iShares MSCI Spain Index (NYSEArca: EWP): up 36.5% year-to-date; Banco Santander is 23.2%

For more information on Spain, visit our Spain category.

Max Chen contributed to this article.

Spain’s GDP declined 1% from the previous quarter and contracted 4.1% year-over-year, reports Matthew Saltmarsh for The New York Times. The weakness of the economy is mainly attributed to the collapse of a debt-fueled construction boom. According to Eurostat, the unemployment rate was 18.1% as of June.

Prime Minister José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero’s plan is to revitalize Spain is by investing in education, infrastructure, research, biotechnology and renewable energy without reducing workers’ rights and also increasing government unemployment benefits, report Rachel Donadio and Victoria Burnett for The New York Times.

Small- and medium-size businesses, which make up 90% of companies in Spain, are faltering under high social benefit policies the government has imposed. The business sector demanded lowering costs to the social security system and that the cost of firing or laying off workers be reduced, but talks have broken down.

Experts remain incredulous, believing Zapatero’s wishful thinking lacks a laid-out plan for medium-term job creation or means of financing such social policies. Zapatero did mention, however, that he might take on more debt to finance the endeavors.

• iShares MSCI Spain Index (EWP): up 29.8% year-to-date

For more information on Spain, visit our Spain category.

Max Chen contributed to this article.

When Gary Gordon wrote about the three most impressive ETF movers in the last month, we thought we could expand on his premise and include some other areas that investors are picking up on during dips in the market place.

In Taiwan, tech companies are leading the economy. This sector in Taiwan is increasing job opportunities to grow the burgeoning firm’s global name brands such as Asustek, innovator of the “netbook,” and Acer, manufacturer of powerful yet cheap PCs that may become the world’s second largest PC maker.

• iShares MSCI Taiwan Index (EWT): up 44.7% year-to-date; up 14.4% in the last month

Turkey has some factors in its favor: the central bank has reduced rates to its lo a record low, consumer confidence is on the rise and jobless claims are declining. But the country is not completely out of the deep yet.

• iShares MSCI Turkey Invest Mkt Index (TUR): up 46.9% year-to-date; up 12.2% in the last month

Spain’s GDP will drop but not as severely compared to the first quarter, according to Reuters. The Spainish economy contracted 1.9% in the first quarter and is expected to shrink 3.6% in 2009 and 0.6% in 2010. Economic stimulus plans are likely to have increased public deficit above 10% of GDP this year.

• iShares MSCI Spain Index (EWP): up 12.3% year-to-date; up 10.5% in the last month

The semiconductor sector is on the mend with demand picking up once again, but has yet to reach numbers previously seen. Overall, the industry is still cutting back to do away with the excess fat and build up efficiency. Tech companies are lowering their forecasts.

• Semiconductor HOLDRs (SMH): up 21.8% year-to-date; up 1.7% in the last month

Homebuilders should have been elated to hear that June housing construction rose to its highest level in seven months as builders rushed to pour foundations to enable first-time homebuyers to take advantage of tax credits. Commerce Department reported that construction of new homes and apartments jumped 3.6% last month. New housing starts and permits have risen for the second straight month in June.

• iShares Dow Jones US Home Construction (ITB): up 6.8% year-to-date; up 8.7% in the last month

Max Chen contributed to this article.

Manuel Maria Ruiz for Reuters reports that the budget deficit keeps growing, while the job market is still in shambles. The important part is that the country has an economic stimulus in place that should be just what the ailing banks need in order to recover. The total is $137.6 billion, which should be enough to keep the structure of the banking system strong, report Paul Day and Jesus Aguado for Reuters.

• iShares MSCI Spain Index (EWP): up 2.1% year-to-date; up 22.3% over three months

For more stories on Europe, visit our Europe category.

Spanish Economy Minister Elena Salgado stated that unemployment was higher in Spain than in other European countries as a result of structural problems and a stagnate housing market, which has put out 800,000 construction workers, write Manuel Maria Ruiz and Inmaculada Sanz for the Guardian.

Spain’s unemployment rate stands at 17.4% and is estimated to climb up to 21.5%, or more than 5 million, by the end of 2010. The economy is projected to shrink 3.8% in 2008 and 1.2% in 2010, and the budget deficit will grow to 9.2% of GDP this year and 11.5% the next.

A Plan E (Spanish Plan for Economic Stimulus and Employment) is Spain’s response to their current recession, according to Reuters. The stimulus, worth 5% of GDP, has reduced joblessness but economists believe it has not done much to effect domestic demand.

Ratings agency Moody’s listed Spain as a “vulnerable” nation with a AAA sovereign debt rating and Standard & Poor’s already downgraded Spain to AA+.

Most economists predict the Spanish economy will stay in the doldrums for a while since its economic model has been exhausted, according to AFP. Previously, the economy was fueled by domestic demand and a property boom, but now household spending has fallen 4.1% after a 2.3% drop in the last three months of 2008. Investment in construction also plummeted 12.4% in the first quarter.

On the upside, Spain’s ETF has crossed above its 200-day moving average on the strength of Banco Santander, which is up 21.8% year-to-date and is 17.3% of the fund. Telefonica, which is 24.9% of the fund, reported this month that its first quarter net profit rose 9.8%, thanks to a growing Latin American business that has helped offset sluggishness in Europe.

• iShares MSCI Spain Index (EWP): up 2.9% year-to-date

Max Chen contributed to this article.

Businesses and merchants across Spain are cutting retail prices to lure in more buyers, but this has only pushed other merchants to further undercut prices, reports Nelson D. Schwartz for The New York Times.

The rate of unemployment, currently at 15.5%, is expected to reach as high as 20%. Joblessness for those under 25 is at 31.8%, similar to levels during the Great Depression, and it is also the highest among the European Union.

When unemployment rises and consumption falls, businesses will cut prices, but this could lead to a cycle of dropping revenue and further cuts in employees or wages. This scenario is similar to deflationary periods during the Great Depression and more recently in Japan’s lost decade.

Spain was the first country utilizing the euro currency that showed a negative inflation rate. The country no longer has a central bank to fix the situation with domestic monetary tools, and now it is at the mercy of monetary policies set by the European Central Bank.

• iShares MSCI Spain Index (EWP): down 12.8% year-to-date

As the Spanish Central Bank calculates its economy, the 4th largest in the euro zone, predictions say it will contract 3% this year and consequently unemployment will climb to around 17%, as stated in MSN Money. GDP is also estimated to drop by 1% next year. Unemployment rates are currently around 15.5% and may reach 19.4% in 2010.

Government implemented tax cuts and emergency spending is projected to increase Spain’s public sector deficit to 8.3% of GDP in 2009 and 8.7% for 2010, reports Andrew Hay et. al. for Guardian.

Prime Minister Jose Luis Zapatero optimistically asserts the recession will turn around in the 2nd half of 2009; the Bank of Spain thinks it will happen in late 2010 with very low rates of growth.

In March, Spain’s inflation was down 0.1%, according to AFP. Annual inflation rates have been falling incrementally since a 5.3% high in July due to the economic downturn and to fall in oil prices.

Economy Minister Pedro Solbes calculates inflation will drop below 1% by July, and assures there is no risk of deflation, which can cause a cycle of diminished demand and increases in unemployment.

• iShares MSCI Spain Index (EWP): down 13.6% year-to-date

Max Chen contributed to this article.

The year-on-year inflation for this European country is down to 0.8% for January, and is anticipated to turn negative due to lower fuel costs. Financial 24 reports that Friday’s data showed the dip toward deflation was being driven by the plunge in global oil prices, rather than a paralysis in Spanish consumer demand.

Deflation is a precarious situation, as it can be a difficult cycle to break.

However, Spain’s core inflation is still 2%, which accounts for fresh food and energy. Service sector inflation is at 3.6% compared to Germany at 1.2%, so the bottom is far off. One economist reports that the service sector is holding position because of a lack of competition and declining inflation is likely to bottom out around -0.3% in May before picking up in the second half.

The European Central Bank sees wider Eurozone consumer prices slowing until midyear and is expected to cut interest rates 0.5% in March. The country cannot wait for this, as unemployment in the EU is at 14.4%. Meanwhile, the stimulus plan in Spain should begin to take effect over summer

• iShares MSCI Spain Index (EWP): down 9.4% over three months; down 9.7% in one week