Brazil

• Monday, October 19th 2020 - 08:27 UTC

  Brazil expects a 2020/21 record harvest with an estimated 268,7 million tons

  

  Brazil expects its 2020-2021 grain harvest to beat the record set by the newly completed season by 4.2%, according to an initial forecast released by the state-owned National Supply Company (Conab).

• Saturday, October 17th 2020 - 09:00 UTC

  World's largest meatpacker, Brazil's J&F, pleads guilty in US court on corruption charges

  

  The owner of the world’s largest meatpacker pleaded guilty in U.S. federal court this week to paying nearly US$ 180 million in bribes to top Brazilian officials in exchange for state-backed financing used to go on a buying spree in the U.S.

• Saturday, October 17th 2020 - 08:57 UTC

  Brazilian iron ore exports increased 18,5% in September over a year ago; strong demand from China

  

  Brazilian iron ore exports increased by 18.5% in September compared to the same period last year, to 37.86 million tons, after Vale increased the pace of production. The volume shipped last month is the biggest since December 2015, when Brazil exported a monthly record of 39.5 million tons, according to the Ministry of Industry, Foreign Trade and Services.

• Saturday, October 17th 2020 - 08:48 UTC

  Brazil considering temporarily zero tariffs on corn and soybean imports outside Mercosur

  

  The Brazilian government is set to discuss a proposal that would temporarily eliminate tariffs on corn and soy imports from countries outside the Mercosur trade bloc, as recently happened with rice, a staple of the Brazilian diet.

• Saturday, October 17th 2020 - 08:36 UTC

  Brazilian Senator, close ally of Bolsonaro forced to resign over hidden cash

  

  Brazilian lawmaker Chico Rodrigues was forced to resign on Thursday from the Senate after police found cash hidden in his underwear during a search of his home.

• Friday, October 16th 2020 - 08:56 UTC

  Brazilian exports of animal protein booming, with China the leading client

  

  Brazilian exports of chicken, pork, and beef continue to be in high demand in 2020, according to data from the Brazilian Animal Protein Association (ABPA) and the Brazilian Meat Packers Association (ABRAFRIGO). In September, however, while exports of beef and pork registered a positive performance in relation to the same month of 2019, chicken exports fell 2.3%.

• Wednesday, October 14th 2020 - 09:07 UTC

  China claims it found residues of Covid-19 in Brazilian beef packaging

  

  Two months after China said it found residues of Covid-19 in a batch of chicken wings imported from Brazil, Beijing authorities repeated the announcement, but this time in relation to Brazilian beef. Apparently, traces of Covid-19 were detected in beef packaging during an inspection carried out at the Port of Dalian, one of the largest in the country.

• Tuesday, October 13th 2020 - 09:01 UTC

  Bolsonaro more popular than ever despite Brazil's questionable Covid-19 record

  

  President Jair Bolsonaro has never been more popular in Brazil, despite his country's woeful handling of the COVID-19 pandemic. Bolsonaro, who tested positive for the virus on July 7, has dismissed it as a “little flu”. Brazil passed five million Covid-19 cases on Tuesday and recorded its 150.000th death on Saturday.

• Monday, October 12th 2020 - 09:15 UTC

  Argentina approves growing GM drought resistant wheat; needs OK from its principal market, Brazil

  

  Argentina has become the first country to approve the growth and consumption of genetically modified wheat, the country's agriculture ministry announced. The ministry's scientific commission said in a statement released in Buenos Aires that it had approved a drought-resistant variety of wheat in the world's fourth-largest exporter of the crop.

• Monday, October 12th 2020 - 08:20 UTC

  One of Brazil's top criminal bosses on the run following a judicial mishap

  

  One of Brazil's biggest crime bosses has gone on the run after being briefly freed from prison the previous day. André Oliveira Macedo, also known as André do Rap, was released from a high-security prison on Saturday - but this decision was revoked just hours later. He has been missing since.