Brazil's new woman

The ghosts of the past - authoritarianism, political persecution, and censorship - have been left behind, as Brazilian democracy passed important tests such as the impeachment of a president and the rise to the presidency of a former trade union leader.

Brazil has now passed another test: having a woman at the height of executive power. The challenges facing President-Elect Dilma Rousseff are huge, but so are her advantages. The basis for continued rapid economic development has been established, and there is nothing to suggest the possibility of significant change in inflation targets, in the autonomy of the central bank, or in the floating exchange rate.