Brazil

• Monday, December 14th 2009 - 11:50 UTC

  Brazil “minimizes” visit of top envoy from the Obama administration

  

  Brazil and Bolivia reacted strongly to the US message to Latinamerica about “flirting” with the Iran regime. Brazil is “minimizing” the Monday visit of a top US Department official and Bolivia said that it is sovereign and practices a “dialogue culture” with all countries.

• Friday, December 11th 2009 - 14:14 UTC

  Brazil and Argentina try again to reach an agreement on bilateral trade

  

  Brazil and Argentina are currently discussing the possibility of reducing the number of products subject to the so called non automatic import licences which has been obstructing bilateral trade and causing a rift between Mercosur’s largest partners.

• Friday, December 11th 2009 - 14:04 UTC

  Brazilian GDP growth in thirs quarter is less that expected: 1.3%

  

  The Brazilian economy expanded 1.3% in the third quarter of 2009 compared to the previous quarter according to the official release on Thursday from the country’s statistics office, IBGE.

• Thursday, December 10th 2009 - 13:24 UTC

  Idle capacity and low inflation allow Brazil to keep basic rate unchanged

  

  Brazil’s central bank kept the benchmark Selic interest rate at a record low for the third straight meeting as inflation remains below target. The bank’s eight-member board, led by President Henrique Meirelles, voted unanimously on Wednesday to keep the overnight rate at 8.75%.

• Thursday, December 10th 2009 - 11:31 UTC

  Brazilian Senate postpones vote on Venezuela’s Mercosur incorporation

  

  The Brazilian senate postponed on Wednesday until next Tuesday the vote on Venezuela’s incorporation to Mercosur following a heated debate on the floor when the opposition strongly criticized Venezuelan president Hugo Chavez.

• Wednesday, December 9th 2009 - 14:33 UTC

  HRW: 1.000 “resistance” killings annually by Rio and Sao Paulo police

  

  Police officers in Rio de Janeiro and São Paulo routinely resort to lethal force, often committing extrajudicial executions and exacerbating violence in both states, Human Rights Watch said in a report released Tuesday.

• Wednesday, December 9th 2009 - 08:32 UTC

  Brazilian Senate ready to vote on Venezuela’s Mercosur incorporation

  

  Brazilian president Lula da Silva announced Tuesday during the Mercosur summit in Montevideo that the Brazilian Senate should, finally, vote on the incorporation of Venezuela to the South American trade group as a full member.

• Wednesday, December 9th 2009 - 00:23 UTC

  Woman elected president to the Brazil’s most popular football club

  

  Former swimmer Patricia Amorim became the first woman to be elected president of Flamengo, the most popular football club in Brazil.

• Tuesday, December 8th 2009 - 04:03 UTC

  Sao Paulo gang digs their way into a vault and 6 million US dollars

  

  A Brazilian gang robbed ten million Reais (approximately six million US dollars) from the vault of a securities transport company after tunnelling from a neighbouring house to the west of Sao Paulo.

• Monday, December 7th 2009 - 23:44 UTC

  Brazilian inflation and interest rates forecasted to increase in 2010

  

  The Brazilian economy is forecasted to expand 0.21% in 2009 according to a Central Bank poll among financial experts and which is published weekly in the Focus Bulletin. In the previous edition the growth estimate was 0.20%.