Brazil

• Wednesday, March 10th 2021 - 08:00 UTC

  Rio's iconic Maracaná stadium to be named Rei Pelé

  

  Brazil’s world-famous Maracana stadium is to get a new name after the Rio de Janeiro state legislature voted on Tuesday to change its official title to the Edson Arantes do Nascimento – Rei Pele stadium.

• Tuesday, March 9th 2021 - 09:55 UTC

  Retrial of Lula da Silva makes him a formidable rival for Bolsonaro's reelection; financial markets rattled

  

  The decision to annul former president Lula da Silva's conviction had an immediate effect in financial markets and scrambled forecasts for the 2022 Brazilian presidential race, with many investors betting it would polarize voters between right-wing populist president Jair Bolsonaro, and Lula, a left-wing populist but also his greatest opponent.

• Monday, March 8th 2021 - 08:55 UTC

  Brazilian state of Mato Grosso admits its hospital network has collapsed

  

  Brazilian state of Mato Grosso, the largest grain producer in the country, announced on Sunday that its hospital network has begun to collapse, as there is a lack of intensive care beds due to the increasing number of patients suffering from COVID-19.

• Saturday, March 6th 2021 - 09:59 UTC

  Bolsonaro tells Brazilians stop whining about the pandemic and Sao Paulo governor calls him “crazy guy”

  

  President Jair Bolsonaro has told Brazilians to “stop whining” about Covid-19, as he criticized measures to curb the virus despite a surge in cases and deaths. His comments came a day after Brazil saw a record rise in deaths over a 24-hour period.

• Saturday, March 6th 2021 - 09:55 UTC

  Bolsonaro confirms his trip to Argentina and supports negotiations with IMF

  

  Brazilian president Jair Bolsonaro confirmed he will be traveling to Argentina on March 26th for the celebration of Mercosur's 30th anniversary, and also offered support for the president Alberto Fernandez administration negotiations with the IMF.

• Saturday, March 6th 2021 - 09:49 UTC

  Maersk forecasts 3% world trade growth; regulations a challenge in Mercosur

  

  The shipping company Maersk expects world trade to grow by 3% or more in 2021. The company sees global trade recovering, but there is still a lot of uncertainty about the size of the impact of Covid-19 on the world economy in 2021. So it is implementing a global strategy that positions it for growth in several countries, including Mercosur members.

• Saturday, March 6th 2021 - 08:40 UTC

  Casino supermarkets sued under French law for selling beef linked to deforestation

  

  French supermarket chain Casino is being sued by indigenous groups from the Amazon, for allegedly selling beef linked to deforestation. The 11 indigenous groups, backed by NGOs in the US and France, are seeking €3.1m in damages.

• Friday, March 5th 2021 - 08:57 UTC

  Dramatic Covid-19 situation in Southern Brazil threatens Rivera, Uruguay

  

  Uruguay is very concerned, and threatened, by the situation in the city of Rivera, bordering the Brazilian city of Santana do Livramento, Rio Grande do Sul state, where the number of infections is alarming and continues to grow, while the Intensive Care Centers in the capital Porto Alegre are saturated.

• Friday, March 5th 2021 - 08:25 UTC

  Brazilian soy exports in March should reach 15 million tons: 250 ships waiting to load

  

  Brazilian soy shipments this month should reach 15 million tons, which could establish a new record for a month, according to the maritime agency Cargonave, considering the 250 ships in the export line-up, a growth of more than 40% compared to the number seen in the same period last year.

• Wednesday, March 3rd 2021 - 08:40 UTC

  Brazil's currency losing ground: central bank chief says it is not justified by economic fundamentals

  

  With public finances threatened, Brazil’s Real has suffered as investors adjust to changing liquidity conditions globally, but some of it has not been justified by economic fundamentals, central bank President Roberto Campos Neto said on Tuesday.