
Brazilian rescuers were searching for some 200 missing people after a tailings dam burst on Friday at an iron ore mine owned by Vale SA, the second major dam disaster involving the company in just over three years.

Michelle Bolsonaro, first lady of Brazil, will be subjected to an examination of the Brazilian treasury within an investigation into a series of suspicious transactions involving the president's eldest son, Valor newspaper reported Friday.

Russia joined on Friday to countries that offered to safeguard peaceful mediation between the government of President Nicolás Maduro and the President of the National Assembly, proclaimed interim president of Venezuela, Juan Guaidó. The government of Vladimir Putin said that they are prepared to cooperate with all global forces acting responsibly, RIA news agency reported.

Russia on Thursday accused the United States of trying to usurp power in Venezuela and warned against a military intervention by confronting Washington and the European Union, which backed protests against one of Moscow's closest allies, Venezuelan partial recognized President Nicolás Maduro.

Brazil's new far-right government on Thursday gave hundreds more public servants the power to keep official records from the public for decades by labeling them secret and ultra-secret. Vice President Hamilton Mourao, standing in while President Jair Bolsonaro was at the World Economic Forum in Davos, signed the decree expanding exceptions within the 2011 transparency law.

The Falkland Islands Legislative Assembly has confirmed that Barry Rowland has agreed a year-long contract extension as Chief Executive, taking his term of employment to October 2020.

The number of United States citizens filing applications for unemployment benefits fell to more than a 49-year low last week, but the drop likely overstates the health of the labour market as claims for several states including California were estimated.

The United States and China are “miles and miles” from resolving trade issues but there is a fair chance the two countries will get a deal, U.S. Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross said on Thursday.

Brazilian new passports will no longer have the symbol of Mercosur as currently they do together with those from the other member states, Argentina, Paraguay and Uruguay. The announcement was made by cabinet chief Onyx Lorenzoni, during a press conference in which he anticipated the targets for the first hundred days of president Jair Bolsonaro's administration.

Jaguar Land Rover is to extend its annual April shutdown in car production because of uncertainties around Brexit. The UK's biggest carmaker will be idle for an extra week because of fears of disruption at its car and engine plants at Liverpool, Birmingham and Wolverhampton.