Brazil

• Saturday, September 17th 2011 - 03:03 UTC

  World Cup 2014 delays expose Brazil’s planning and infrastructure weaknesses

  

  Brazil’s celebration of the 1,000-day countdown to the 2014 is being marred by construction delays as striking workers and government foot-dragging hurt preparations for the soccer tournament.

• Friday, September 16th 2011 - 07:05 UTC

  Brazil increases tax on cars with high content of imported components

  

  Brazil on Thursday raised a tax on cars with a high content of imported components to protect jobs following a surge in shipments from China and elsewhere that has been fueled by a rally in the currency.

• Friday, September 16th 2011 - 06:36 UTC

  Questions about Miss Universe registry papers and complaints from Miss France

  

  It has been a news-headlines plagued Miss Universe pageant, both before and after, that finally crowned beauty queen Leila Lopes, Angola’s first in Sao Paulo.

• Thursday, September 15th 2011 - 21:43 UTC

  US financial crisis is “political” and needs of strong decisions, says Rousseff

  

  Brazilian president Dilma Rousseff said the financial crisis in the Untied States which is contaminating the rest of the world is more ‘political’ than economic and it’s not only a matter of money, but also and mainly of ‘strong decisions’

• Thursday, September 15th 2011 - 17:03 UTC

  Mercosur is not working, good relations between two presidents ‘are not enough’

  

  President Jose Mujica admitted to Uruguayan manufacturers and farmers that with recurrent Argentine and Brazilian obstacles to trade “it’s very hard to make Mercosur function” and good relations between presidents “are not enough”.

• Thursday, September 15th 2011 - 07:19 UTC

  Fifth cabinet minister drops out from Brazilian cabinet on corruption allegations

  

  Brazil's Tourism minister resigned late Wednesday amid a long-brewing corruption scandal, marking the fifth cabinet-level official to step down from President Dilma Rousseff's nine-month-old government since June.

• Thursday, September 15th 2011 - 07:16 UTC

  Brazil mourns death of creator of the controversial ‘bio-diesel’

  

  Brazilian scientist Expedito Jose de Sá Parent, 70, who is considered the creator of bio-diesel died this week in Fortaleza. President Dilma Rousseff paid tribute to the researcher who developed the ‘green’ fuel from oilseeds.

• Thursday, September 15th 2011 - 07:04 UTC

  Fears Brazilian states’ battle for oil royalties share could turn nasty

  

  Brazil's government presented a plan on Wednesday for dividing up oil royalties among states, a crucial step in advancing its effort to tap deepwater reserves it hopes will turn the country into a major crude exporter.

• Thursday, September 15th 2011 - 06:56 UTC

  Brazilian economy beasts forecasts: grows at fastest pace in six months in July

  

  The Brazilian economy expanded at its fastest pace in six months in July, even as the central bank bets on slower growth to curb the fastest inflation in six years.

• Tuesday, September 13th 2011 - 07:31 UTC

  Brazil’s Tombini anticipates tougher global slowdown than in 2008/09

  

  Brazilian Central bank President Alexandre Tombini said in an interview with the local Valor Economico newspaper that Europe's expected difficulty in implementing a rescue package and slowing global growth are likely to justify the bank's recent surprise cut to interest rates.