Brazil

• Tuesday, February 5th 2019 - 09:40 UTC

  Falklands Sao Paulo air link to become operational next October to coincide with tourist season

  

  Argentina and the UK have agreed that the second commercial air link between the Falkland Islands and South America, with a stopover at Cordoba, Argentina, will begin operational next October in coincidence with the South Atlantic summer tourist season, according to Martin Dinatale, an Argentine journalist who specializes in diplomatic affairs.

• Tuesday, February 5th 2019 - 09:29 UTC

  Bolsonaro ally to lead the Senate, but his negotiating capacity have yet to be tested

  

  The Brazilian Senate elected a pro-government lawmaker as their chief, potentially boosting President Jair Bolsonaro’s reform agenda but also leaving the administration’s strength in the upper house in question. Bolsonaro congratulated Davi Alcolumbre, saying his challenge is to act on Brazilian voters’ desire for change.

• Tuesday, February 5th 2019 - 08:49 UTC

  Bolsonaro in semi-intensive care and treated with broad spectrum antibiotics

  

  Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro was in semi-intensive care in hospital on Monday following abdominal surgery and was set to stay in the hospital at least another week, his office said. Concerns of potential infection meant the medical team wanted more time to monitor the far-right leader, 63, after the operation a week ago to remove a colostomy bag, the office said.

• Monday, February 4th 2019 - 08:57 UTC

  GM plans to invest US$ 2.5bn over three years in Brazil in return for tax breaks

  

  Automaker General Motors Co is in talks to invest 9 billion reais (US$ 2.5 billion) in the Brazilian state of Sao Paulo over the next three years in return for tax incentives, newspaper Valor Economico has reported.

• Monday, February 4th 2019 - 08:50 UTC

  Brazilian industrial output up 1.1% last year compared to 2017

  

  Brazil's industrial output increased 1.1% in 2018, the Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics (IBGE) announced. According to IBGE, though the annual figures were positive, the industrial sector grew at a slower pace than it registered in 2017, when production increased 2.5%.

• Monday, February 4th 2019 - 07:17 UTC

  Bolsonaro with a feeding tube; surgery more complicated than expected; discharge date remains unchanged

  

  Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro was ill in hospital with a feeding tube on Sunday following surgery days ago to remove a colostomy bag fitted after he suffered a knife attack late last year.

• Saturday, February 2nd 2019 - 09:14 UTC

  Petrobras begins development of massive offshore field; Brazil targets 7.5m bpd in a decade

  

  Petrobras has put the finishing touches on the first wave of development at the massive offshore Brazil Lula Field, pumping first oil from the latest floating production unit to be installed at the country's largest oil and natural gas producer, the company announced on Friday.

• Saturday, February 2nd 2019 - 09:09 UTC

  Brazilian Lower House new leader pledges support for Bolsonaro's reforms

  

  Brazil’s lower house of Congress reelected on Friday by a vast majority Rodrigo Maia, from the Democratas party, for a new two-year term as president of the chamber. Maia had the support of Brazil’s newly elected President Jair Bolsonaro and has pledged to work with the new administration to pass key reforms seen as crucial for the country to balance its budget, such as the pension reform.

• Friday, February 1st 2019 - 11:10 UTC

  Brazil's fiscal deficit in December, a challenge for Bolsonaro and the new Congress

  

  The Brazilian government posted a fiscal deficit of 41.13 billion reais (US$ 11.27 billion) in December, the third widest monthly deficit on record, the central bank said on Thursday. While it was in line with forecasts and amplified by seasonal factors, the shortfall highlights the challenge of exerting tighter control over the country's finances which new President Jair Bolsonaro has said is one of his top priorities.

• Friday, February 1st 2019 - 10:43 UTC

  New Brazilian Congress opens with great challenges, but Bolsonaro has been made vulnerable by Flavio's finances

  

  The real business of governing Brazil starts this Friday for president Jair Messias Bolsonaro with the opening of the new congress through which his ambitious reform program must pass. The former army captain is currently absent from Brasilia will have to follow events from his hospital bed in São Paulo, where he is recovering from a third major operation following his stabbing at a campaign rally last year that almost cost him his life.