Brazil's largest city of Sao Paulo began fifteen days of lockdown to fight the spread of the coronavirus on Tuesday. This after Brazil's own president, Jair Bolsonaro, has faced fierce criticism for his blasé treatment to combat the threat, which he describes as a quote “little flu.”
Brazil’s President Jair Bolsonaro laid to rest a diplomatic spat with China in a call with President Xi Jinping on Tuesday, with the two agreeing to work together to fight coronavirus as Brazil’s largest city went into lockdown.
Mercosur country members agreed on Wednesday to share information and statistics on the coronavirus evolution as part of a common strategy destined to combat the pandemic, which included facilitating the return of ex-pats and ensuring the movement of goods among the block.
The coronavirus outbreak hammered Brazil on Wednesday, crushing local markets, infecting more members of the country’s political elite and prompting loud protests against President Jair Bolsonaro, whose son waded into a diplomatic spat with China.
Brazilian president Jair Bolsonaro has so far escaped coronavirus contagion but his national security advisor, his mines and energy minister plus the Senate chief haven't been so lucky.
Brazil President Jair Bolsonaro said on Tuesday his second coronavirus test was negative and his government asked Congress to authorize a state of emergency that would allow it to scrap fiscal targets and free up funds to combat the virus’ spread.
Brazilian Foreign Trade Secretary Marcos Troyjo, who was part of the Brazilian delegation that recently visited Florida, has tested positive for the coronavirus, his office said in a statement on Monday.
As if things were not difficult enough for markets in Brazil, whose stocks and currency are among the world's worst-performing this year, an unexpected twist in the country's fragile politics threatens to make the situation even tougher.
Brazil's Congress overturned a presidential veto on Wednesday in an ongoing battle over appropriations with President Jair Bolsonaro, doubling social assistance for elderly and disabled people that will cost an extra 20 billion reais (US$ 4.2 billion) this year.
A lawmaker who says Brazil is not doing enough to fight rampant political corruption put forward a bill on Tuesday that would punish any politician convicted of the graft with amputation of both hands.