Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva is in full flow. Beaming broadly, favourite cheroot in hand, Brazil’s president recounts with gusto the day he said No to the International Monetary Fund. “I called [Rodrigo] de Rato [managing director] at the IMF and told him I didn’t want his money. He was really upset,” he laughs. “Rato said: ‘But lending to Brazil is really important to me.’”