Brazil

• Tuesday, November 10th 2015 - 06:49 UTC

  Another can of worms in Petrobras: 1.2bn dollars for a century old Texas refinery

  

  Brazilian officials are investigating allegations that Petrobras overpaid hundreds of millions of dollars for the Pasadena, Texas, refinery and funneled money into a massive kickback scheme that's led to dozens of convictions and arrests and fueled calls for the impeachment of president Dilma Rousseff, who chaired the company until 2010.

• Monday, November 9th 2015 - 08:54 UTC

  Brazil's annual inflation just below 10%, the highest in 12 years

  

  Brazil's annual inflation rate accelerated in October to just below 10%, the highest reading in almost 12 years, after sharp fuel and food price hikes. Consumer prices, as measured by the benchmark IPCA index, rose 9.93% in 12 months through October, up from 9.49% in September, statistics agency IBGE said in a release. In the first ten months of the year inflation reached 8.52%

• Monday, November 9th 2015 - 08:02 UTC

  Mining disaster in Brazil: 28 remain disappeared; BHP Billiton CEO flying to Minas Gerais

  

  Brazilian authorities are still struggling to determine what caused the rupture in dams at an iron ore mine and desperately working to recover the bodies of as many as 28 people believed to have been swept away in the massive mudflow and flood.

• Saturday, November 7th 2015 - 08:02 UTC

  Brazil truckers announce strike, and roadblocks, scheduled to begin Monday

  

  Independent truckers have called for roadblocks across Brazil starting Monday in a repeat of the two-week strike that delayed grain and meat transport in late February and early March. However it remains unclear how much support the strike movement has.

• Friday, November 6th 2015 - 14:16 UTC

  Petrobras strike strong support fuelled by resistance to sale of assets and cutting investments

  

  Brazilian union leaders say stronger than expected support for a strike at Petrobras is due to growing worker opposition to a creeping privatization of the state oil company. The strike, which began on Sunday, has become the biggest stoppage in two decades at Petrobras and shows workers back union efforts to renationalize the company and cut foreign participation in the oil industry, union leaders say.

• Friday, November 6th 2015 - 09:26 UTC

  Brazil central bank moves 4.5% inflation target timeframe to 2017

  

  The Brazilian central bank will take the necessary measures to bring inflation back to the 4.5% target in 2017, bank director Altamir Lopes, said on Thursday. It is the first time the bank has given a timeframe for reaching the center of its official target range after it dropped its outlook to meet this goal late 2016 due to a weaker Brazilian currency.

• Wednesday, November 4th 2015 - 23:02 UTC

  Brazil's industrial output falls for a fourth straight month in September; 10.9% in twelve months

  

  Brazil's industrial output fell for a fourth straight month in September as automakers, metal producers and other manufacturers were hit by a worsening recession, government data showed on Wednesday. This follows the Brazilian central bank's announcement on Tuesday that the economy in 2015 would shrink over 3% with inflation almost at 10%.

• Wednesday, November 4th 2015 - 08:07 UTC

  Brazilian construction tycoon sentenced to 19 years in prison for Petrobras corruption scandal

  

  The federal judge handling the Petrobras corruption cases sentenced the former vice president of Brazilian engineering firm Mendes Junior to 19 years and four months in prison for his role in the massive kickback scheme.

• Tuesday, November 3rd 2015 - 09:58 UTC

  Brazil oil workers stage national strike and stopped operations at 22 rigs

  

  Oil workers staging a national strike in Brazil said on Monday they had stopped all operations at 22 of state-controlled oil giant Petrobras's 44 rigs in the Campos basin, an offshore area that accounts for about 80% of the country's oil output. Oil workers declared a strike on Sunday.

• Tuesday, November 3rd 2015 - 06:42 UTC

  Petrobras import of US condensate help address refining shortage, but faces tax controversy in Brazil

  

  Petrobras’ move to start buying processed U.S. condensate will help output at its domestic refining network, but the purchases have exposed a wrinkle in Brazilian law that could allow the state-run company to import the light oil duty-free, tax lawyers and traders said. Typically, condensate is considered a very light form of crude found in oil or natural gas wells and in raw form is not taxable in Brazil.