Brazil

• Friday, December 9th 2016 - 10:01 UTC

  Brazil and Argentina agree to open Mercosur to the world and expand trade horizons

  

  Brazil and Argentina foreign ministers agreed on Thursday in Brasilia that Mercosur must open to the world and expand its trade horizons, but it will have to be done without Venezuela which has been currently “ceased” from the block. Jose Serra and Susana Malcorra coincided that Mercosur must speed the trade agreement with the European Union taking advantage of the fact US elected-president Donald Trump has pledged to limit such treaties.

• Friday, December 9th 2016 - 09:47 UTC

  UK and Brazil underline significance of bilateral cooperation and initiatives in strategic areas

  

  British Secretary of State for International Trade, Dr Liam Fox, and the Brazilian Minister for Industry, Foreign Trade and Services, Marcos Pereira, emphasized the importance of current bilateral cooperation and agreed initiatives on strategic areas to support mutual economic development, during the 9th UK-Brazil Joint Economic and Trade Committee (JETCO) meeting held in Brasília this week.

• Thursday, December 8th 2016 - 11:53 UTC

  Temer submits pension reform bill: retirement age raised to 65

  

  Brazil's President Michel Temer submitted a crucial bill to Congress that would raise the retirement age to 65. The draft bill, part of a pension reform plan, would apply to all men under 50 and women under 45, following 25 years of contributing to social security.

• Thursday, December 8th 2016 - 11:44 UTC

  Brazil Supreme Court defuses clash with Senate, but Calheiros no longer in presidential succession line

  

  Brazil’s Supreme Court voted Wednesday to leave Senate President Renan Calheiros in his powerful leadership post, raising hopes economic overhauls making their way through Congress can be approved.

• Wednesday, December 7th 2016 - 10:57 UTC

  Constitutional clash in Brazil, Senate disobeys Supreme Court: countdown for Temer presidency?

  

  Brazil moved a step closer to a constitutional crisis on Tuesday as the head of the Senate refused to abide by a Supreme Court Justice ruling stripping him of his powerful post. A defiant Sen. Renan Calheiros told reporters he won’t recognize a decision handed down late Monday by a single high-court judge. The clash could mean the beginning of the countdown for president Michel Temer weak administration and his fiscal reforms program

• Tuesday, December 6th 2016 - 06:43 UTC

  Renan Calheiros suspended from Parliament during his trial for corruption

  

  Brazil's Senate Speaker Renan Calheiros was suspended from duties by a Supreme Curt judge Monday, pending his trial where he faces corruption charges in what constitutes anothe blow to President Michel Temer's administration. The decision, made by judge Marco Aurelio Mello was effective immediately, but needs to be confirmed by a majority of judges on the supreme court bench, a court official said.

• Thursday, December 1st 2016 - 18:26 UTC

  Temer admits Brazil “lacks solid institutions”, but foreigners are eager to invest in the country

  

  President Michel Temer said that “Brazil doesn’t have solid institutions” and that is why, “small factoids” menace the country’s institutional framework. Temer made such statements during an event Monday evening with private businessmen.

• Thursday, December 1st 2016 - 18:14 UTC

  Brazil anticipates blockbuster 2017 harvest and exports

  

  Brazil is getting ready for a blockbuster 2017 harvest and booming exports, amid favorable weather forecasts, according to recent estimates. With a plentiful harvest expected, Brazil’s National Grain Association predicts grain exports will rebound, with soybean exports of 60 MT in 2017, compared with some 51 MT for 2016. Corn exports will increase to 30 MT, compared with some 18.5 MT in 2016, the association reported.

• Thursday, December 1st 2016 - 18:12 UTC

  Petition to impeach President Temer mostly symbolic but erodes his political standing

  

  Brazilian opposition party filed a petition for the impeachment of President Michel Temer, underlining the growing difficulties facing the centre-right leader as he tries to introduce austerity reforms.

• Thursday, December 1st 2016 - 14:13 UTC

  From dream to nightmare in seconds: Chapecoense fans cry their heroes

  

  Fans of Chapecoense, the Brazilian football club enjoying a fairy tale season until almost wiped out in a plane crash, wept outside the stadium on Tuesday. All year, the once struggling, impoverished club had delighted the people of Chapeco, a city of about 200,000 in Santa Catarina state. Now, only grief remains.