Brazil

• Wednesday, August 12th 2015 - 07:30 UTC

  Moody's tough on Brazil but also confident on a mid term growth rebound

  

  Moody’s Investors Service cut Brazil’s credit rating to near-junk status on Tuesday but said the country’s coveted investment grade status is safe for now, proving some relief to investors and the government of President Dilma Rousseff.

• Saturday, August 8th 2015 - 10:42 UTC

  Petrobras profits plunge 89% in 2Q; underperforming assets dumped

  

  Brazilian state-led oil company Petrobras said its second-quarter net income plunged 89% after a one-time charge for underperforming assets that caught analysts off guard. The 1.28-billion-real charge was taken as Petrobras' new executives and board of directors try to control the company's $132 billion debt, the oil-industry's largest, by preparing up to $15bn of assets for sale by the end of 2016.

• Saturday, August 8th 2015 - 09:20 UTC

  Brazil's July inflation climbed to 9.56%, powered by electricity bills, up 57.8%

  

  Brazil's annual inflation rate climbed to 9.56% in July, the highest level since 2003, official data showed Friday. Prices are being driven higher by the rising cost of electricity -- up 57.8% in the past 12 months -- as well as increasingly expensive housing, food and beverages, and health care.

• Friday, August 7th 2015 - 08:17 UTC

  Countdown for Dilma: two thirds of Brazilians support impeachment; 16 August 'D' day

  

  Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff's approval ratings have struck rock bottom with nearly seven out of ten Brazilians in favor of having Congress begin impeachment proceedings against the beleaguered leader of Latin America's largest economy, according to the latest opinion poll release. A nationwide rally calling her for resignation is planned for August 16.

• Friday, August 7th 2015 - 05:55 UTC

  Lan and Tam consolidate under an only brand of Latam Airlines

  

  LATAM Airlines Group will consolidate all its carriers, including Lan Airlines and Tam Linhas Aéreas S.A., into a single brand over the next three years, the company announced Thursday. Since Lan and Tam merged in 2012, they've operated as separate brands, but the parent company's goal has been to provide a carrier that can provide seamless coverage to the entire South American continent.

• Thursday, August 6th 2015 - 08:27 UTC

  Brazil's top prosecutor backed by peers for another term, but he needs Senate confirmation

  

  Brazil's top prosecutor, who has put dozens of politicians under investigation for allegedly taking bribes in the Petrobras corruption scandal, has won the backing of his peers to stay on the job for two more years.

• Thursday, August 6th 2015 - 03:47 UTC

  Rio 2016: The greatest sport festivity in the heart of Brazil

  

  By Dilma Rousseff (*) - We are still one year away from it, but Brazil's heart is already beating faster.The generous Brazilian heart leaps up when confronted with two of its passions -- welcoming people from all over the world and competing with enthusiasm and fair play in a superb sport performance.

• Wednesday, August 5th 2015 - 10:27 UTC

  BG announces first oil with FPSO vessel, 240kms off Rio de Janeiro coast

  

  BG Group announced first oil from the Cidade de Itaguaí floating, production, storage and offloading (FPSO) vessel, the sixth unit to start production across the group's discoveries in the Santos Basin, offshore Brazil. The FPSO will produce from the Iracema North area of the Lula field in the Petrobras-operated BM-S-11 block.

• Wednesday, August 5th 2015 - 08:36 UTC

  Milestone for Peregrino field off Brazil: 100 million barrels of oil in four years

  

  After just four years in production, the Peregrino field in the Campos basin offshore Brazil has passed a significant milestone, with 100 million barrels of oil produced since April 2011. The field, jointly owned by Statoil and Chinese Sinochem, achieved the milestone on August 2.

• Wednesday, August 5th 2015 - 07:08 UTC

  “Shoot first, ask questions later”, the Rio do Janeiro military police procedure

  

  Military police in Rio de Janeiro who seem to follow a “shoot first, ask questions later” strategy are contributing to a soaring homicide rate but are rarely investigated and brought to justice, Amnesty International said on Monday as it published exclusive statistics and analysis ahead of the one-year countdown to the 2016 Rio Olympic Games.