Brazil

• Thursday, March 5th 2020 - 07:28 UTC

  Brazil's newly appointed Culture Secretary sacks six top officials

  

  Seeking to clean up an office embroiled in scandal, Brazil's new culture secretary started her tenure Wednesday by firing six top officials, including one who said rock music pushes people toward Satanism.

• Thursday, March 5th 2020 - 07:16 UTC

  Brazil to auction US$ 1 billion forex swaps on Thursday to boost the anemic Real

  

  Brazil’s central bank on Thursday will auction up to US$ 1 billion foreign exchange swaps contracts, it said on Wednesday, the latest FX market intervention in the face of the real’s 12% slide this year to a series of record lows against the dollar.

• Tuesday, March 3rd 2020 - 08:37 UTC

  Socialist Paris mayor makes Lula da Silva an honorary citizen of the city

  

  Paris city hall made Brazil’s former leader Lula da Silva an honorary citizen on Monday, in a likely blow to his political enemy President Jair Bolsonaro whose relationship with France has deteriorated. The motion to honour Lula was backed by the city’s Socialist mayor Anne Hidalgo.

• Tuesday, March 3rd 2020 - 08:37 UTC

  Weaker Brazilian currency helped boost exports during February

  

  Brazil posted a trade surplus of US$ 3.1 billion in February, official data showed on Monday, double expectations and a sign that the record low exchange rate may finally be starting to support exports.

• Tuesday, March 3rd 2020 - 08:36 UTC

  Brazil confirms second case of coronavirus: patient who arrived from Italy

  

  Brazil’s Health Ministry over the weekend confirmed the country’s second case of the fast-spreading new coronavirus, diagnosed in a 32-year-old patient in São Paulo who had recently visited Italy and arrived on Thursday.

• Tuesday, March 3rd 2020 - 08:29 UTC

  Brazil increases bio-content of blended diesel to 12% from 11%

  

  Brazil increased the volume of biodiesel blended with diesel sold at the pump to 12% from 11% on Sunday, the latest increase to a biofuels mandate that aims to decrease Latin America's largest economy's dependence on imported barrels.

• Tuesday, March 3rd 2020 - 08:21 UTC

  Brazil's soybeans sales to China and soy-meal exports to the EU remain very strong

  

  Brazil, the world’s largest soy producer, and supplier, shipped 3.55 million tons of soybeans in the first three weeks of February, up 367% month on month, according to a report from the Brazilian foreign trade department.

• Saturday, February 29th 2020 - 07:50 UTC

  Controversy in Brazil over quick regulatory approval for agrochemicals

  

  Brazil’s Agriculture Ministry will allow for agrochemicals awaiting regulatory approval to receive licenses automatically, potentially allowing new pesticides to reach the market faster, according to new rules published on Thursday.

• Saturday, February 29th 2020 - 07:49 UTC

  Brazil's beef industry hit by drop in Chinese demand; cattle price down 10% in January

  

  China’s beef imports will fall in the first half of 2020 due to fallout from the coronavirus outbreak, which is complicating the circulation of people and trade globally, Rabobank said in a report released on Thursday.

• Saturday, February 29th 2020 - 07:44 UTC

  Merrill Lynch and JP Morgan cut Brazil's 2020 economic growth to below 2%

  

  Bank of America Merrill Lynch cut its 2020 Brazilian economic growth outlook to under 2.0%, while JP Morgan reduced its outlook for Latin America’s largest economy even further below the threshold that many observers say is highly sensitive for President Jair Bolsonaro’s administration.