Brazil

• Thursday, January 16th 2014 - 09:17 UTC

  Brazil raised the benchmark rate to 10.5%: combating inflation the target

  

  Brazil's central bank raised its benchmark interest rate on Wednesday to 10.50% from 10%, a larger-than-expected hike aimed at curbing inflation in spite of a weak economy. The decision by the bank's monetary policy committee, Copom, was unanimous.

• Wednesday, January 15th 2014 - 19:33 UTC

  Second Brazilian airline promises to cap fares for the coming World Cup

  

  Avianca Brasil has joined Azul in becoming the second Brazilian airline to promise to cap prices for the upcoming football World Cup, which opens June 12 in Sao Paulo. Avianca said it would match Azul and limit one-way fares to a maximum of 999 Reais (425 dollars).

• Wednesday, January 15th 2014 - 00:09 UTC

  Fears in Brazil: police group apparently involve on vengeance killing rampage

  

  Twelve people were killed in the Brazilian city of Campinas, the second biggest in São Paulo state, on Sunday night with police investigating if the murders were linked. All of the murders occurred during a three-hour period in the Ouro Verde area, in the city’s periphery, and were followed by the torching of three buses and a car by hooded men.

• Saturday, January 11th 2014 - 06:49 UTC

  Brazil's inflation off target in 2013 and prospects in election year not encouraging

  

  Brazilian consumer prices ended 2013 higher than expected at 5.91%, above the upper limit of the government target, after inflation surged in December, official statistics released Friday showed. The Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics (IBGE) said last month's inflation figure of 0.92% was the highest for December since 2002, and compared with 0.54% a month earlier.

• Saturday, January 11th 2014 - 06:45 UTC

  Brazilian jails in collapse: one convict is slain every two days

  

  Brazilian report shows at least 218 inmates were killed in the country’s jails last year, an average of more than one convict slain every two days. The data was published by Brazilian daily Folha de Sao Paulo on Thursday.

• Friday, January 10th 2014 - 06:40 UTC

  Brazil treasury pays highest yield to launch new 10-year fixed-rate domestic bond

  

  Brazil's Treasury on Thursday paid the highest yield ever to launch a new 10-year benchmark fixed-rate domestic bond. The Treasury said it sold two million NTN-F bonds maturing in January 2025, worth 1.64 billion Reais (683 million dollars), at a yield as high as 13.3899%. The bond is expected to become Brazil's new 10-year benchmark paper.

• Wednesday, January 8th 2014 - 20:17 UTC

  Kennedy in 1963 considered a military intervention in Brazil; a coup followed in 1964

  

  Former US President John F Kennedy mulled possible military intervention in Brazil one year before the 1964 coup that ousted then constitutional president Joao Goulart, according to archive documents released on Tuesday.

• Monday, January 6th 2014 - 06:57 UTC

  Ballot test this year in Latam: Brazil, Colombia, Bolivia, Uruguay, Panama, Costa Rica and El Salvador

  

  Seven out of 19 Latin-American countries will be holding elections this year and in four of them, Brazil, Bolivia, El Salvador and Uruguay, left leaning catch-all coalitions will try to hold on to power. Likewise with two conservative governments, Colombia and Panama.

• Monday, January 6th 2014 - 06:48 UTC

  Brazilian opposition ready to present attractive, balanced presidential ticket

  

  Former Brazilian environment minister Marina Silva has agreed to run for vice president in October elections on the presidential ticket of Eduardo Campos, the governor of Brazil’s Pernambuco state, O'Globo newspaper reported. Silva, who will make her intention publicly known by mid-February, could announce her candidacy at a January 17 meeting of leaders of Campos’ Brazilian Socialist Party (PSB).

• Saturday, January 4th 2014 - 04:38 UTC

  Mantega releases crucial data to calm market anxiety about Brazil's accounts

  

  Brazil's Finance Minister Guido Mantega insisted on Friday that the government is keeping spending under control as he sought to calm anxiety about the deterioration of the government's accounts. The minister said the primary budget surplus, (excess of revenue over expenditure before debt payments) would be above the goal of 73 billion Brazilian Reais for 2013 (30.5bn dollars), equivalent to about 1.5% of gross domestic product.