Brazil

• Tuesday, September 16th 2014 - 05:43 UTC

  Giant observation tower in the Amazon to monitor climate change

  

  Construction has begun on a giant observation tower in the heart of the Amazon basin to monitor climate change. The Amazon Tall Tower Observatory is expected to rise 325m from the ground.

• Tuesday, September 16th 2014 - 05:20 UTC

  Santander new chairwoman confirms full control of the Brazil branch

  

  Spanish banking giant Santander under its new executive chairperson Ana Botin announced on Monday the purchase of the remaining 25% of Banco Santander Brasil which it did not already own.

• Thursday, September 11th 2014 - 17:00 UTC

  There are two Mercosur, but only the ideological one prevails

  

  The original Mercosur is over; it has been reduced to a political block with a three member board, Brazil, Argentina and Venezuela, according to Demetrio Magnoli a renowned Folha de Sao Paulo columnist who added that the 'political' Mercosur has helped the Alliance of the Pacific to advance.

• Wednesday, September 10th 2014 - 05:01 UTC

  Moody's lowers Brazil's sovereign bond rating to 'negative' from 'stable'

  

  Moody's Investors Service lowered its outlook on Brazil's government bond rating to 'negative' from 'stable', saying the country's sustained low economic growth and worsening debt metrics reflected a risk of reduced creditworthiness.

• Tuesday, September 9th 2014 - 03:27 UTC

  Dilma confirms Finance minister Mantega is stepping down in October

  

  President of Brazil Dilma Rousseff has affirmed that current Finance minister Guido Mantega will not carry on in his post should the Workers' Party (PT) candidate win a second term as head of state in October's presidential elections.

• Monday, September 8th 2014 - 06:44 UTC

  Petrobras corruption allegations smear Brazil's political system a month ahead of elections

  

  A jailed former executive at state-controlled oil giant Petrobras Paulo Roberto Costa has reportedly implicated dozens of politicians from Brazil's leading political parties in a kickback scheme, a legal development that could shake up next month's general election.

• Monday, September 8th 2014 - 05:56 UTC

  Dilma pledges new economic policy and team if she wins: bye, bye Mantega

  

  Brazil’s President Dilma Rousseff has hinted that if re-elected next month, she would not reappoint Finance Minister Guido Mantega. When reporters in Fortaleza asked Rousseff about Mantega’s role if she were re-elected, she responded that, “A new election means a new government, a new team.”

• Saturday, September 6th 2014 - 06:27 UTC

  Brazil's industrial activity shows the economy if far from a strong recovery

  

  Industrial-activity data released this week added to worries that Brazil's economy, already in recession, is far from a strong recovery. The trade group National Confederation of Industry, CNI, said revenue for the Brazilian manufacturing sector fell 5.1% in July from a year earlier and rose 1.2% from June.

• Saturday, September 6th 2014 - 03:04 UTC

  Marina Silva's lead turns Dilma more aggressive in her re-election bid

  

  Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff has adopted a more combative re-election campaign strategy after opinion polls showed her trailing popular environmentalist candidate Marina Silva. Two election surveys this week showed Rousseff was the frontrunner in the first round ballot scheduled for October 5, but would lose to Silva, a former environment minister, in a likely runoff.

• Friday, September 5th 2014 - 02:14 UTC

  Brazil leaves basic interest rate unchanged at 11%, given 'inflation prospects'

  

  With Brazil battling recession and inflation a month away from the presidential election, the Central bank kept its key interest rate on hold at 11%. Traders and analysts had forecast no change and the central bank's monetary policy commission (Copom) duly decided to leave all quiet following its monthly two-day meeting.