Brazil

• Monday, May 21st 2012 - 03:56 UTC

  Brazilian economy slows down in March for third consecutive month

  

  Brazilian government's economic activity index dropped for the third consecutive month in March, confirming a slowdown in the economy in the period.

• Sunday, May 20th 2012 - 22:18 UTC

  Rousseff receives apology and compensation for tortures suffered when she was a guerrilla

  

  President Dilma Rousseff will receive 10,000 US dollars in reparations from Rio do Janeiro state for torture she was subjected to while jailed as a leftist guerrilla during Brazil's 1964-1985 military dictatorship, her office said Friday.

• Friday, May 18th 2012 - 09:39 UTC

  Brazil closely following events in Venezuela because of Chavez condition

  

  Brazilian Foreign Affairs minister Antonio Patriota revealed that Brasilia is following closely the situation in Venezuela because of the medical condition of President Hugo Chavez, to whom he sent a message of quick recovery.

• Friday, May 18th 2012 - 04:10 UTC

  Brazil’s Supreme Court confirms university quota system for Afro-descendents

  

  Brazil’s Supreme Court voted unanimously to permit a quota system that would favour Afro-descendants in entering universities, ending an eight-year legal battle.

• Friday, May 18th 2012 - 03:58 UTC

  Brazil passes bill to challenge embedded culture of secrecy and bureaucracy

  

  A freedom of information law has taken effect in Brazil, challenging an embedded culture of secrecy and bureaucracy. Proponents, including President Dilma Rousseff, said the measure is nothing short of a revolution for a system that has kept tight control over information for decades.

• Thursday, May 17th 2012 - 21:24 UTC

  Spain supports EU/Mercosur trade accord on a “region to region” basis respecting WTO rules

  

  Spain’s Foreign Affairs minister Jose Garcia Margallo said that Madrid supports negotiations for a free trade agreement between Mercosur and the European Union on a “region to region” basis, back stepping from his proposal last April to exclude Argentina following the seizure of YPF from Repsol.

• Wednesday, May 16th 2012 - 21:14 UTC

  Rousseff empowers Truth commission to look into the past without hatred or vengeance

  

  In a solemn ceremony Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff has sworn in the seven members of a Truth commission created to look into human rights abuses committed during the nation’s long dictatorship.

• Wednesday, May 16th 2012 - 01:27 UTC

  Brazilian discomfort: ends automatic import licences for Argentine perishables

  

  Brazil this week escalated a growing trade fight with Argentina by increasing the bureaucratic obstacles for importing about 10 perishable products including apples, raisins, and potatoes, a senior Brazilian government official was quoted by the media.

• Wednesday, May 16th 2012 - 01:07 UTC

  Brazil planning to cut taxes on electricity to help reduce industry costs

  

  The Brazilian government has plans to cut and simplify taxes for electricity producers and distributors as part of a strategy to reduce Brazil's high business costs and stimulate its struggling economy, reports Reuters.

• Wednesday, May 16th 2012 - 01:03 UTC

  President Rousseff happy and supportive of the 2 dollars Real

  

  The Brazilian Real dropped past 2 per dollars for a second day as President Dilma Rousseff said it has been “extremely overvalued,” encouraging speculation the currency of Latin America’s biggest economy may fall further.