Brazil

• Saturday, October 28th 2017 - 13:32 UTC

  Temer survives biology and court charges, but his reforms' agenda is significantly weakened

  

  President Michel Temer’s administration turned its attention Thursday to pressing its reform agenda, but it is unclear if it has the support to govern after convincing a small majority in Brazil's Congress not to suspend the leader and make him stand trial on corruption charges.

• Tuesday, October 24th 2017 - 07:37 UTC

  Brazil's Temer admits the pensions' reform could be delayed until next year

  

  Brazil's President Michel Temer admits for the first time that the crucial pension reform legislation could not be passed by Congress this year. In an interview with Poder360 news website, Temer said the government had to again consult lawmakers in the government coalition, many of whom have already said they are doubtful the legislation will pass this year.

• Thursday, October 19th 2017 - 20:53 UTC

  “Untouchable” Temer does it again: Brazilian congress will support his full presidential mandate

  

  A Brazilian congressional committee on Wednesday voted against making President Michel Temer stand trial on corruption charges. The 39-26 vote by the justice committee in the lower house was non-binding but gives Temer political momentum ahead of the full chamber taking up the issue.

• Wednesday, October 18th 2017 - 07:37 UTC

  Brazilian Senate challenges Supreme Court and returns suspended lawmaker

  

  The Senate on Tuesday rejected a decision of Brazil's top court and returned a suspended lawmaker to his post, in what critics said was the latest self-protection move by politicians accused of corruption.

• Tuesday, October 17th 2017 - 12:16 UTC

  Federal audit freezes Rousseff and Gabrielli assets over losses in refinery purchase

  

  Brazil's federal audit court ordered a freeze of former President Dilma Rousseff's assets as well as those of José Sérgio Gabrielli, ex-head of state-run oil company Petrobras, over a US$580 million loss in the 2006 purchase of a Texas refinery.

• Friday, October 13th 2017 - 14:56 UTC

  Swiss prosecutors will help with 2016 Rio Olympics corruption investigation

  

  Federal prosecutors in Switzerland have agreed to help Brazilian authorities investigating Olympic official Carlos Nuzman, who is suspected of vote-buying in a corruption conspiracy linked to the Rio de Janeiro Games.

• Friday, October 13th 2017 - 13:36 UTC

  Giant meatpacker owners involved in insider trading could lose plea bargain deal with prosecutors

  

  Brazil’s police investigation into insider trading by the owners of the world’s largest meatpacker JBS SA has found that they made a profit by taking financial positions before details of their plea bargain deal with prosecutors became public, the head of the probe said on Tuesday.

• Friday, October 13th 2017 - 12:59 UTC

  Meirelles optimistic about congressional approval of pensions' reform

  

  Brazilian Finance Minister Henrique Meirelles said on Thursday “there’s a very good chance” that the country’s proposed pension reform bill will be approved by the end of the year. Addressing a question-and-answer session at an Institute for International Finance meeting in Washington Meirelles said that it would be simpler to pass the bill this year than next year because of political challenges that could come with Brazil’s upcoming presidential election in October 2018.

• Thursday, October 12th 2017 - 20:55 UTC

  Global food prices up 0.8% in September, according to FAO Index

  

  Global food prices rose slightly in September, as firmer prices of vegetable oils and to a lesser extent dairy products offset declining prices for staple cereal grains. The FAO Food Price Index averaged 178.4 points for the month of September, up 0.8% from August and marking a 4.3% increase from a year earlier.

• Thursday, October 12th 2017 - 12:10 UTC

  Brazilian central bank insists on the need to limit pension spending

  

  Brazil’s lawmakers can’t duck their responsibility to pass belt-tightening measures, central bank President Ilan Goldfajn told a Senate hearing in Brasilia this week. Reform proposals, particularly a constitutional amendment to limit pension spending, will help keep inflation low, reduce the structural interest rate and buoy the country’s overall recovery, Goldfajn said.