Brazil

• Saturday, March 28th 2015 - 11:15 UTC

  Brazil just managed to skim recession last year with 0.1% growth but is expected to shrink in 2015

  

  Brazil's economy grew just 0.1% last year, barely keeping the country out of a recession, the government's statistics bureau said on Friday. It was the worst result since 2009 and bad news for President Dilma Rousseff, whose popularity has plummeted along with Brazil's economic performance.

• Friday, March 27th 2015 - 08:36 UTC

  Another major corruption scandal hits Brazil, this time fraud at the tax office

  

  Brazilian authorities on Thursday said they uncovered a tax fraud scheme at the Finance Ministry's tax appeals board that may have cost taxpayers up to 19 billion Reais (5.96 billion dollars).

• Friday, March 27th 2015 - 08:31 UTC

  Brazilian industry confident depreciation of the currency will help spur exports

  

  Brazil's private sector believes the depreciation of the Real against the dollar can help spur a manufacturing sector recovery even though the business climate has been affected by the Petrobras scandal, an official with the Federation of Industries of the State of São Paulo, Fiesp, said.

• Friday, March 27th 2015 - 08:23 UTC

  Brazil's central bank forecasts economy will contract 0.5% and inflation climb to 7.9%

  

  Brazil's economy will contract 0.5% in 2015 and inflation will climb to 7.9%, ending the year far outside the tolerance range, the Central Bank admitted on Thursday in its latest quarterly inflation report.

• Friday, March 27th 2015 - 08:07 UTC

  Petrobras engineering firm contractor files for bankruptcy

  

  Brazilian engineering firm Galvao Engenharia said on Wednesday it filed for bankruptcy protection, as state-run oil company Petrobras cut off payments due to a broad corruption scandal in which it had been implicated.

• Thursday, March 26th 2015 - 09:20 UTC

  Argentina considers Citigroup deal with US Judge Griesa could have violated local law

  

  Argentina's Economy Minister Axel Kicillof said on Wednesday a deal between Citigroup Inc and U.S. judge Thomas Griesa allowing the banking giant to process two Argentine debt payments violated the country's laws.

• Thursday, March 26th 2015 - 09:07 UTC

  Brazil central bank will cease forex intervention program as of April

  

  Brazil's central bank announced on Tuesday it will not extend its currency intervention program past March 31 as a combination of political problems at home and fears of higher U.S. interest rates push the Real near its lowest levels in a decade. The bank will, however, roll over all swaps expiring after May 1.

• Thursday, March 26th 2015 - 08:34 UTC

  Majority of Brazilians favor impeaching President Rousseff; opposition leaders resist the move

  

  A majority of Brazilians favor impeaching President Dilma Rousseff due to the economic slump and a snowballing corruption scandal at state-run oil company Petrobras, according to a poll released this week. But despite calls for Rousseff's ouster and recent street demonstrations against her government, opposition leaders have resisted pushing for impeachment and say it is unlikely.

• Wednesday, March 25th 2015 - 07:35 UTC

  Obama and Rousseff look to improved relations with a visit to the White House

  

  The Obama administration has again invited Brazil's President Dilma Rousseff for a state visit to Washington, a diplomatic breakthrough that both sides hope will lead over time to greater trade between the two biggest economies in the Americas.

• Tuesday, March 24th 2015 - 05:08 UTC

  Brazilian economy on path to biggest contraction since 1990, says central bank survey

  

  Financial experts expect Brazil's economy to shrink 0.83% in 2015, its biggest contraction since 1990, and inflation to climb to 8.12%, its highest level since 2003, according to the results of a Central Bank survey released on Monday.