Brazil

• Friday, August 23rd 2019 - 09:56 UTC

  Bolsonaro creates a “crisis cabinet” to address the Amazon forests fires and criticisms

  

  Brazilian president Jair Bolsonaro following a Thursday meeting with his ministers at the Planalto Palace announced the creation of a crisis cabinet to address the Amazon rainforest situation.

• Friday, August 23rd 2019 - 09:54 UTC

  France and UN lead battle for the protection of fire plagued Amazon rainforest

  

  France and the United Nations called on Thursday for the protection of the fire-plagued Amazon rainforest as Brazil's right-wing president blamed NGOs for promoting an “environmental psychosis” to damage the country's interests.

• Friday, August 23rd 2019 - 09:40 UTC

  Forest fires in Bolivia: half a million hectares, 1.700 fighters and a Super tanker

  

  Bolivian authorities warned this week that 70% of the department of Santa Cruz — where more than a quarter of the country's population lives — is under “extreme risk” from forest fires. According to the government, nearly 500,000 hectares of forest have now been turned into ashes.

• Friday, August 23rd 2019 - 09:36 UTC

  “Macron is an idiot”, is the title of a video posted by Eduardo Bolsonaro

  

  “Macron is an idiot” is the title of a video posted in social networks by a Brazilian member of congress who happens to be the son of president Bolsonaro, Eduardo Bolsonaro

• Friday, August 23rd 2019 - 09:28 UTC

  Ex minister calls Bolsonaro “corrupt and liar”, and warns of EU boycotts to Brazilian exports

  

  A Brazilian former minister and presidential candidate in the last election, called president Jair Bolsonaro, “corrupt, despicable, dishonest and irresponsible” during a conference on Thursday at the Minas Gerais Federal University.

• Thursday, August 22nd 2019 - 18:51 UTC

  Brazil central bank anticipates that there is scope to further cut interest rates

  

  Brazilian central bank president Roberto Campos Neto said on Wednesday that the balance of economic risks and increasingly benign inflation means there is scope to cut interest rates further.

• Thursday, August 22nd 2019 - 09:56 UTC

  Bolsonaro suggests green groups started the blaze in the Amazon to blame him

  

  Wildfires in the Amazon rainforest in northern Brazil have ignited a firestorm on social media, with President Jair Bolsonaro on Wednesday suggesting green groups started the blazes. Images of fires purportedly devouring sections of the world's largest rainforest have gone viral on Twitter.

• Thursday, August 22nd 2019 - 08:20 UTC

  Brazilian born striker becomes first to represent China's national soccer team

  

  Brazil-born striker Elkeson is in line to become the first player without Chinese heritage to represent China after the country's football authorities registered him for Asia's World Cup qualifying tournament next month.

• Wednesday, August 21st 2019 - 09:55 UTC

  Daytime smoke blackout in Sao Paulo blamed on Amazon rainforest fires

  

  Brazil's Amazon rainforest has seen a record number of fires this year, according to new data from the country's space research agency. The National Institute for Space Research (Inpe) said its satellite data showed an 83% increase on the same period in 2018.

• Wednesday, August 21st 2019 - 09:52 UTC

  Brazil tightens controls over money laundering and illicit financial activities

  

  The Brazilian government on Tuesday issued a decree moving the Financial Activities Control Board (Coaf), which monitors nefarious financial activity such as money laundering, into a new Financial Intelligence Unit under central bank control.