Brazil

• Tuesday, July 31st 2012 - 01:25 UTC

  Brazil: Violent land disputes between tribes and ranchers on the rise

  

  Violent disputes over indigenous land are on the rise in Brazil, sparking heightened militancy by natives angered by broken promises of compensation and slower government registrations.

• Tuesday, July 31st 2012 - 01:19 UTC

  Chavez after an energy alliance with Argentina and Brazil in the framework of Mercosur

  

  Venezuelan president Hugo Chavez announced he expected to sign an oil/gas alliance between Argentina’s YPF and PDVSA (Venezuelan Petroleum) when he meets with his peer Cristina Fernandez in Brasilia in the framework of the Mercosur extraordinary summit to officially incorporate the country as full member of the trade group.

• Monday, July 30th 2012 - 23:50 UTC

  Brazil’s development bank will disburse loans at a faster pace to prop economy

  

  The national bank for economic and social development, BNDES, Brazil's largest source of long-term credit for companies, is ready to disburse loans at a faster pace in the years ahead to prop the economy, the bank's top executive said on Monday.

• Monday, July 30th 2012 - 04:48 UTC

  Mujica will try to appease ‘lady’ Cristina and have closer links with Dilma

  

  President Jose Mujica travels to Brasilia on Monday for the Mercosur extraordinary summit on Venezuela, but his agenda also includes talking with Cristina Fernandez about the latest clash referred to the dredging of a shared River Plate access canal and with host Dilma Rousseff about his growing proximity to Brazil.

• Monday, July 30th 2012 - 04:42 UTC

  The significance of Venezuela for Brazil underlined by the country’s diplomats

  

  Brazilian diplomats revealed during a television Globo News debate details of the controversial procedure applied by Mercosur countries to suspend Paraguay and agree the incorporation of Venezuela as full member.

• Saturday, July 28th 2012 - 02:35 UTC

  Despite profits in Brazil, Santander bank profits halved following write-downs

  

  Profits at Spanish banking giant Santander have halved after it made more write-downs against unrecoverable loans secured against property. The bank, which is the Euro zone biggest, said first-half profits halved to 1.7bn Euros in the six months to the end of June.

• Saturday, July 28th 2012 - 02:12 UTC

  Mujica forecasts Venezuela will rapidly become Uruguay’s third trade partner

  

  Uruguayan president Jose Mujica strongly defended the incorporation of Venezuela to Mercosur and forecasted that in a short time the country will become Uruguay’s third trade associate, behind China and Brazil.

• Saturday, July 28th 2012 - 01:25 UTC

  Rousseff pledges to tackle the “Brazil cost” with new stimulus package

  

  Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff said on Friday her government will unveil more measures to stimulate the economy in the next few months, including investments in ports, airports, railroads and highways.

• Saturday, July 28th 2012 - 00:10 UTC

  Russia investing heavily in becoming self sufficient in beef production

  

  Russian President Vladimir Putin has an ambitious plan to cut his country's 3 billion dollars annual import bill for beef. He even aspires to return Russia's beef industry to its pre-revolutionary stature.

• Thursday, July 26th 2012 - 18:52 UTC

  Brazil discusses with Chavez arrangements for Venezuela’s Mercosur incorporation

  

  Venezuelan President met on Wednesday with a committee from the Brazilian government to discuss mechanisms to speed the full integration of the country to the regional block. Brazil currently holds the Mercosur rotating chair.