
Argentina’s economy contracted 5.8% in the first quarter of 2019, the country’s statistics agency said on Wednesday, a reflection of the biting recession that has hammered domestic consumption and production.

Brazilian miner Vale SA said on Wednesday that it will fully resume operations at its Brucutu mine within 72 hours after an appeals court overturned an earlier ruling that halted processing because of concern about the safety of a nearby dam.

A divided Federal Reserve held the line on interest rates Wednesday and indicated formally that no cuts are coming in 2019. The decision came amid divisions over what is ahead and still leaves open the possibility that policy loosening could happen before the end of the year depending on how conditions unfold.

Brazil’s central bank held its benchmark interest rate at a record-low 6.50% on Wednesday, as expected, holding back from signalling looser policy because of doubts on economic reforms. The scenario outlined by policymakers was one of anaemic economic growth and high levels of economic slack putting downward pressure on inflation at home, plus the prospect of interest rates coming down in major developed economies.

Latin American stocks and currencies surged on Tuesday with a dovish boost from the European Central Bank and positive headlines from the U.S.-China trade tensions boosting sentiment.

A court in Sao Paulo on Tuesday accepted a request by Brazilian conglomerate Odebrecht to begin a corporate recovery procedure aimed at fending off bankruptcy at the scandal-tainted group.

The Brazilian government’s plans to overhaul its pension system can still be saved if lawmakers reverse changes to transition rules and concessions to legislative aides, according to Economy Minister Paulo Guedes.

Brazilian state-run oil firm Petrobras has made natural gas discoveries in six deep-water fields in the Sergipe Basin, it said in a regulatory filing on Monday.

United States President Donald Trump said on Tuesday that he had spoken to Chinese President Xi Jinping and that the two leaders’ teams would restart trade talks after a long lull in order to prepare for a meeting at the Group of 20 summit later this month.

Scandal-ridden Brazil construction giant Odebrecht, which has admitted to spending nearly US$ 800 million to bribe officials across Latin America to win contracts, filed for bankruptcy protection on Monday, judicial sources said.