LONDON (Reuters) - Veteran investor Mark Mobius of Templeton's emerging markets Investment Trust said on Wednesday he was "actively looking" to increase holdings of Brazilian equities, which have been sold down heavily in recent weeks.
"At this time we are actively looking to potentially increase our holdings in the country, particularly in world-class companies that previously were too expensive as well as others that we think have good prospects and appear to have solid management and little or no debt," Mobius said in a statement.
Brazilian markets have been rocked by a corruption scandal involving state oil firm Petrobras and former executives have been accused of conspiring with construction and engineering companies to funnel kickbacks to ruling party members
But Mobius said the positive result of the scandal could be greater transparency and reforms while lower oil prices could help spur growth and exports.
"So in our minds, (Brazil) probably deserves a closer look, particularly the consumer-oriented sectors that have seen slower earnings as per-capita incomes and consumer spending has stagnated. We are also looking at Brazil's banking sector right now which may offer good opportunities in the future," he added.