A Wal-Mart store in Ribeirao Preto, Brazil. Wal-Mart opened its first store in the country in 1995, and now has 322 outlets in 17 of the country's 26 states. In Brazil, Wal-Mart recently branched out into e-commerce, unveiling late last month a website it hopes will extend its reach across the country, where consumer demand is booming. According to a company representative, the Americas division of the company represents a key growth driver for Wal-Mart, but the retailer is determined to focus on profitable growth in the region rather than expanding for its own sake. The Americas division posted sales of $47 billion for the fiscal year ended January 31, and its sales have increased at a compound annual growth rate of 18 percent for the past 10 years. (Australfoto/Douglas Engle)(Photo/Douglas Engle)
A burning sugar cane field lights up the night near Ribeirao Preto, Brazil. The city is the center of Brazil's Ethanol boom, which is helping to fuel Brazil's energy independence alongside new oil discoveries, hydro and other bio fuels. Proponents of ethanol, made from sugar cane and which burns cleaner in cars, claim it is environmentally friendly. But critics say that the practice of setting cane fields on fire - to remove the excess leaves of the plant before harvest - counteracts any clean benefits the fuel has.(Australfoto/Douglas Engle)
A worker cuts stalks of sugar cane near Ribeirao Preto, Brazil to be used in ethanol production. Ethanol production began during the in 1970s during the nation's military government as a national security measure for energy independence. The independence never happened and ethanol gradually fell out of fashion, but those first steps have put Brazil at the forefront of the world's Bio-fuel boom as the fuel makes a comeback. More ethanol per acre is made from canee than from corn, and for less cost. The mills even use part of the canee to produce electricity run the plant. Aside from the fuels used in the field machinery, plants are energy self-sufficient.(Australfoto/Douglas Engle)
