Brazil

• Tuesday, July 28th 2009 - 03:28 UTC

  Brazil insists on the political angle of the Itaipú agreement

  

  The Brazilian presidency advisor in international affairs Marco Aurelio García said that the agreement between Brazil and Paraguay regarding the surplus power from the shared Itaipú hydroelectric dam (operationally the largest in the world) is “most important” and helps to normalize bilateral relations.

• Monday, July 27th 2009 - 12:35 UTC

  Brazil agrees to treble payment for Paraguay’s energy from Itaipú

  

  Brazil and Paraguay agreed over the weekend on an amicable solution to a decade long dispute over a hydro-electric dam on their shared border, with Brazil agreeing to triple the amount it pays its neighbour for energy.

• Saturday, July 25th 2009 - 11:53 UTC

  Argentina and Brazil will address “trade differences” in Sao Paulo

  

  Argentina and Brazil agreed to hold talks next week to address the ongoing trade differences which threaten to sour the bilateral relation. The meeting of Presidents Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner and Lula da Silva was held on the sidelines of the Friday Mercosur summit in Paraguay.

• Friday, July 24th 2009 - 14:20 UTC

  Brazil to complain UK “dumping” of 1.000 tons of hazardous waste

  

  The Brazilian government said it will lodge a formal complaint with the World Trade Organisation over shipments of more than 1,000 tons of hazardous waste which arrived from Britain

• Thursday, July 23rd 2009 - 14:55 UTC

  Controversy as Israeli Foreign Minister begins South American tour

  

  Israel's foreign minister ran into controversy on the first day of a Latinamerican trip when an official of Brazil's ruling party reportedly called him a “fascist”. Israel's Haaretz newspaper reported that Valter Pomar, secretary of international relations for the Workers Party, described Avigdor Lieberman as “a racist and a fascist” during an interview

• Thursday, July 23rd 2009 - 14:45 UTC

  Australia’s conflict with China favours Brazilian iron-ore sales

  

  Spot iron-ore vessel bookings from Brazil to China jumped to a record in July as Australia suspended spot sales following detentions of Rio Tinto's top sales officials in China, reports Reuters.

• Thursday, July 23rd 2009 - 14:44 UTC

  Record fine on world largest brewer: 176 million USD

  

  Brazil's antitrust regulator imposed a record fine of 352 million Reais (approximately 176 million US dollars) Wednesday on beverage giant AmBev. The Cade regulator found that AmBev, brewer of Skol, Brahma and Antarctica beers, used discounts, premiums and exclusivity agreements to dissuade retailers from selling competing brands.

• Thursday, July 23rd 2009 - 14:30 UTC

  World’s largest meat processor applies for listing in New York market

  

  The United States unit of the world's largest meat processor, Brazilian JBS SA, filed for an initial public offering of up to 2 billion US dollars on Wednesday, making it the largest planned offering in the US IPO pipeline.

• Thursday, July 23rd 2009 - 14:25 UTC

  Brazil slows basic rate cut as the economy begins to rebound

  

  Brazil’s Central bank lowered on Wednesday the benchmark Selic rate by a half point to a record low 8.75%. The bank had cut the rate by at least a full point at all four previous policy meetings of 2009.

• Wednesday, July 22nd 2009 - 08:28 UTC

  Brazil tells Hillary of dissatisfaction with Arias mediation in Honduras crisis

  

  Brazilian Foreign Affairs Minister Celso Amorim phoned last weekend US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, who was in New Delhi, India, to “express concern” about the slow pace and handling of the negotiations for the reinstatement of the democratic order in Honduras, reports Folha do Sao Paulo.