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For international equity investors these days, working without an array of technological equipment is inconceivable. When Art Lerner began actively to invest in 1969, though, his main tool was the telephone. Even then it could be frustrating. "Back when I started, the companies we visited were usually shareholder unfriendly. There was very little information or research material available - some annual reports didn't even have an English version. You could ring up a company in, say, the Netherlands and have the CFO say to you: 'What do you care for? We run the company, we make money, and that's that.' Of course, they were salaried staff, and had no incentive to improve the share price."

Central America: A whole new way of thinking

1 David Montagu, William de Gelsey, Andrew Large, Hans de Gier

Is the international sovereign bond market on the verge of a great transformation or will the recent debate over terms and conditions turn out to be so much hot air? Investors and bankers are hoping for the latter proclaiming that any changes would cut off the supply of capital to emerging markets. Others decry a situation in which they see different lenders getting different treatment due more to historical evolution than to any set of rational principles.

Zambia's economy remains as dependent as ever on copper, and there is no immediate prospect that the current depressed price of this commodity will improve. Zambia also desperately needs currency stability. The kwacha has fallen by more than 70% against the dollar in the past two years and interest rates are over 30%. Helen Henton reports

Laisser-faire never was quite what it seemed. It required a lot of state power to create and a lot of state power was acquired under the guise of free markets. The process hasn't finished yet. Globalization, far from undermining the nation state, is fostering stronger governments capable of standing up to the new forces. Laisser-faire is over, re-regulation has begun and welfare spending is about to rocket, especially in the emerging markets. The 21st century will witness more varied forms of capitalism than ever before, each with a differing role for the market and a strong role for the state, argues Brian Caplen

An extensive audit of 18 Russian commercial banks shows that many bigger ones are - by western standards - clinically dead. International lenders have lost patience. They want to push Russia's central bank and government into a major overhaul of the sector. But they lack the leverage to enforce it. And the central bank lacks the will. John van Schaik reports.

Portugal's banks are performing well, stimulated by the new single currency. In the long term, though, they will need to consolidate if they are to carve out profitable niches in euroland. One route to this, arrangements with Spanish banks, has just closed, at least temporarily. James Rutter reports on the likely next steps

Prompted by the ravages of Hurricane Mitch and the crisis in emerging markets, Central America is changing - fast. As the crisis in Brazil finally explodes the myth of monetary sovereignty, Central American capital markets and institutions are being restructured in line with global developments. Michael Peterson toured Central America's banking sector, stopping off in Costa Rica to interview the president.

How does an emerging-market sovereign extract the best from its underwriters? Argentina, praised for its borrowing success, has learnt its tough tactics the hard way. Gone are the days when freewheeling bankers could sell the republic a pup. Now they are met with controlled aggression and barbed comments alternating with soothing charm. Good cop, bad cop, Argentine-style, has shaved basis points off the nation's funding costs. Brian Caplen reports on the team behind the strategy