Blumberg in the News

Blumberg Grain was featured in a CNBC article today titled "The American who wants to save Egypt's bread", which explores the recent activity and advancements of Blumberg Grain in Egypt. An excerpt follows:

The rising price of bread was one reason Hosni Mubarak lost power in Egypt. Food inflation is one reason his replacement, Mohammed Morsi, also lost the job. "Egypt is the largest importer of wheat in the world, but they have to buy it on the spot market," said Philip Blumberg of Blumberg Capital.

That may change.

Blumberg recently reached a deal with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi to build 164 grain storage facilities designed to prevent spoilage, reduce price volatility and eventually lead to a local commodities exchange.

"It's crazy," the American investor said. "The largest wheat buyer in the world is constrained by storage."

Blumberg, a Harvard Business School graduate who made his fortune in South Florida real estate, said his family has a history with agriculture, having farmed cotton and pecans in Alabama and tomatoes in Florida. He began to see the buildings he invested in as commodities, too.

"A building is nothing but a bundle of commodities, an assembly of copper, nickel, glass, steel and concrete," his son, David, told Africa Agribusiness.

Philip Blumberg began seeing the need for food security and storage in developing countries, and he decided to create a fund called Blumberg Grain to invest in projects.

To read the full article, click here. For more news and information, visit Blumberg Capital Partners.

KPMG CRE Outlook Survey Results

KPMG LLP, the audit, tax and advisory firm, completed the 2012 KPMG Commercial Real Estate Outlook Survey with reflections and responses of nearly 80 senior executives in the commercial real estate industry. The survey found that CRE executives remain focused on efficiency and cost cutting as the commercial real estate market continues to rebound in a lackluster economy.

"Commercial real estate executives are seeing their margins and profits being squeezed, so increasing operational efficiency and reducing costs is a key focus," said Greg Williams, national leader of KPMG LLP's Building, Construction and Real Estate practice. "At the same time, there is tempered optimism as industry fundamentals continue to slowly improve and bright spots emerge... Commercial real estate execs are finding it challenging to source sufficient product that will produce the necessary yields to meet investor expectations. The gap between ask and bid price can still be significant in certain markets," said Williams. "It's also taking a lot longer to raise capital needed to grow their portfolios, while increased regulatory reporting requirements are driving up costs."

58% of the respondents expect the U.S. economy to improve next year, but they remain guarded about an economic recovery. In fact, 63% do not expect the economy to recover as a whole until 2014 or later - as opposed to 77% who, in the 2011 KPMG survey, predicted the recovery would be complete by the end of 2013.

For more news and information visit Blumberg Capital Partners.