Economy

Thursday, May 7th 2020 - 07:47 UTC
Brazil expects exports to China to help mitigate the contraction of the country's economy

Brazilian Economy Minister Paulo Guedes said that according to initial estimates, the country's economy would shrink 6% as a result of the recession caused by the new coronavirus pandemic, but now, thanks to the increase in exports to China, expectations are of a retraction of only 4% this year.
Thursday, May 7th 2020 - 07:34 UTC
Brazil lowers interest rates to a record low 3%, with suggestions of a similar cut in June

Brazil’s central bank slashed interest rates more than expected on Wednesday, cutting its benchmark Selic rate by 75 basis points to a record-low 3.00% and previewing another cut as it battles an economic crisis fueled by the coronavirus pandemic.
Wednesday, May 6th 2020 - 09:55 UTC
Argentina and bondholders agree “much can change in the course of a week”

The government of Argentina and its biggest bondholders are clashing over plans to restructure US$ 65 billion in foreign debt, with little sign of either side budging in last-ditch talks to strike a deal.
Wednesday, May 6th 2020 - 09:40 UTC
Petrobras record oil exports of one million barrels per day in April

Petrobras set a new oil exports record of 1 million BPD in April, as domestic demand plunged, the Brazilian state-controlled oil firm said on Monday, days after a large group of other oil producers, OPEC+, began a 9.7-million-BPD collective cut aimed at rebalancing the market.
Wednesday, May 6th 2020 - 08:20 UTC
US largest pork abattoir resumes limited production

Tyson Foods Inc will resume limited production at its largest U.S. pork plant this week, the company said late on Tuesday. Tyson Fresh Meats, the beef and pork subsidiary of Tyson Foods, had indefinitely suspended operations at the Waterloo, Iowa plant on April 22 to contain the rapid spread of the coronavirus.
Wednesday, May 6th 2020 - 07:00 UTC
British new car sales slumped to its lowest level since February 1946

British new car sales slumped by an annual 97% in April to the lowest level of any month since February 1946 as factories and dealerships shut due to the coronavirus outbreak.
Tuesday, May 5th 2020 - 07:02 UTC
Half of the world's workers in danger of losing livelihoods, ILO report

Half of the world's workers are in danger of having their livelihoods destroyed by the coronavirus pandemic, a United Nations agency has warned. The International Labour Organisation's updated analysis emphasizes its severe impact on people in informal work.
Tuesday, May 5th 2020 - 07:00 UTC
Surprise: Brazil's retailer industry finds a consolidated e-commerce sector as it gradually reopens

Brazil's battered retailers are starting to reopen after weeks of coronavirus lockdown but may exit the crisis transformed, with the e-commerce sector strengthened and brick-and-mortar chains facing an uphill path to normality.
Tuesday, May 5th 2020 - 06:58 UTC
US prepared to borrow a record US$ 3 trillion in second quarter; national debt soared above 100% of GDP

United States has said it wants to borrow a record US$ 3 trillion in the second quarter, as coronavirus-related rescue packages blow up the budget. The sum is more than five times the previous quarterly record, set at the height of the 2008 financial crisis.
Tuesday, May 5th 2020 - 06:44 UTC
A quarter of UK employees furloughed, and companies claiming £8 billion to pay wages

Around a quarter of employees in Britain have been furloughed and companies have claimed £8 billion from the government to sustain their wage bills during the coronavirus lockdown, tax authorities said on Monday.