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☆ Brazilian Oil Industry Gets Support From New Congressional Caucus
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-26 | by ( Oct. | At P.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +3 min

By Anthony BoadleBRASILIA (Reuters) - Brazilian lawmakers have set up a congressional caucus to represent Brazil's oil and gas industry, led by state-run producer Petrobras, and to back the company's plans to explore offshore fields near the mouth of the Amazon River. Petrobras has planned to explore in the so-called Northern Brazilian Equatorial Margin, following major discoveries in neighboring Guyana and Suriname. We have to explore for oil at the mouth of the Amazon," Pazuello said. The Parliamentary Front in Support of Oil, Gas and Energy, as the caucus is called, was launched on Tuesday with 217 members, or 42% of the lower chamber of Congress. He said the launch of the caucus received unprecedented support in Congress and was a non-partisan effort.

Persons: Anthony Boadle BRASILIA, Eduardo Pazuello, Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva's, Pazuello, Equinor, Washington Quaquá, Jair Bolsonaro, Anthony Boadle, Rod Nickel Organizations: Reuters, Petrobras, Wednesday, Mines and Energy Ministry, Gas, Energy, Lula's Workers Party Locations: Para, Guyana, Venezuela, Suriname, Brazil, Rio de Janeiro

☆ Analysis: Jet-setting Lula risks losing focus on Brazil issues, allies say
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-17 | by ( Lisandra Paraguassu | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

BRASILIA, May 17 (Reuters) - Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva's focus on foreign policy and a relentless schedule of trips abroad risks distracting him from tackling thorny domestic issues, two senior allies of the leftist president told Reuters. But so far, less than six months into his third term, he has made twice as many foreign trips as he did at the start of his first presidency in 2003. By comparison, fellow leftist President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador of Mexico, who skipped the coronation, has made five foreign trips since taking office in 2018. "You have to focus on decisive issues," the aide said, citing a need for higher economic growth and job creation. Marco Feliciano, a pro-Bolsonaro lawmaker in the lower house, said "international trips are part of the presidential agenda, but not at the beginning of the government ...

"I am convinced that both Ukraine and Russia are waiting for someone else to say, 'Let's sit down and talk,'" Lula told journalists last week. Lula has suggested a peace solution could be the return of newly invaded territory, though not Crimea - an option that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy has rejected outright. For his initiative to advance, Lula needs China to send a message to Russia, said a European diplomat in Brasilia. Some 20 agreements to be signed include creation of a sixth satellite in a joint program started in 1988, which will be used for monitoring the Amazon, Brazil's foreign ministry said. China overtook the United States as Brazil's top trading partner in 2009 and is a major market for Brazilian soybeans, iron ore and oil.

BRASILIA, March 23 (Reuters) - Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva heads to China this weekend for a five-day visit to refresh relations with his country's largest export market and seek new Chinese investment in the Latin American country. "Brazil has to keep a flexible and pragmatic position in this dispute between China and the United States," said Senator Hamilton Mourao, who as Brazilian vice president met with Xi in Beijing in 2019. CHINESE INVESTMENTLula drew Brazil closer to China and traveled twice to Beijing during his two presidential terms from 2003 to 2010. Trade relations were not affected by the diplomatic storm, though Chinese investment stalled, due in part to the pandemic preventing China's executives from visiting Brazil. By 2021, investment by Chinese companies in Brazil recovered to the level of 2017, according to the China-Brazil Business Council, which forecasts steady growth in coming years.

☆ Brazil's Lula to announce fiscal framework after China visit, criticizes central bank
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-21 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

The new framework is considered crucial to addressing fiscal concerns after Lula secured congressional approval for a multi-billion-real package that bypasses the constitutional spending cap to boost social spending and fulfill campaign promises. However, in an interview with local news website Brasil 247, Lula said it wouldn't make sense to announce the fiscal framework and then travel to China. Reacting to the postponement, interest rate futures closed higher at the short end of the yield curve. During the interview, Lula also criticized the country's central bank, saying that an interest rate of 13.75% - its current level - is "irresponsible," adding he will continue to fight the current level to stimulate the economy. Brazil's central bank has been holding its benchmark interest rate at a six-year high since September and, according to economists polled by Reuters, is expected to maintain it unchanged at the Wednesday meeting.

☆ Brazil govt to resume fuel taxes -ministry
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-27 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

BRASILIA, Feb 27 (Reuters) - The Brazilian government is set to resume the collection of federal taxes on fuels this week, the Finance Ministry said on Monday. According to the ministry, the tax revenues from fuels will be 100% recovered with the end of the waiver. The measure to exempt federal taxes levied on fuel was launched by former President Jair Bolsonaro last year as he sought to boost his popularity by lowering prices ahead of a re-election bid. With the return of the taxes on gasoline and ethanol, Haddad's team will have a reinforcement of approximately 29 billion reais ($5.59 billion) in federal revenues this year. The end of the waiver is seen positively by the ethanol industry, since without taxes the biofuel loses competitiveness against gasoline.

☆ Debate grows among Lula's team over Brazil fuel tax policy
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-24 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Former far-right Jair Bolsonaro unveiled the fuel tax cut last year as he sought to ease inflation and win over voters ahead of the election which he eventually lost to Lula. Since Lula's victory, debate has raged within his Workers Party (PT) over what to do with the costly and popular measure. Tensions are now mounting over whether to extend further the gasoline and ethanol tax waiver. In a series of Twitter posts, Congresswoman Gleisi Hoffmann, president of Lula's Workers Party (PT), said fuel taxes should only resume once state-run oil giant Petrobras (PETR4.SA) defines a new pricing policy. Vice-President Geraldo Alckmin said on Friday the government had not yet made a decision on fuel taxes.

☆ Analysis: Lula confronts Brazil military's pro-Bolsonaro lean with carrot and stick
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-23 | by ( Anthony Boadle | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +6 min

But at a Friday meeting the commanders of the armed forces, Lula did not bring up the attack, according to a government official who witnessed the meeting. The armed forces' strategic plans to modernize its equipment included developing a nuclear-powered submarine contracted with France's Naval Group, a subsidiary of defense contractor Thales (TCFP.PA). GENIE OUT OF THE BOTTLEWhether a splurge on military hardware will help tamp down pro-Bolsonaro sentiment in the armed forces is open to question. "Lula wants this to go away as soon as possible," he added. "Starting to punish members of the armed forces for what happened may be legally the right thing to do but politically it would open a Pandora's box."

☆ Brazil police raid governor's house over capital riots
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-20 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

The raid targeted Rocha's house and workplaces, police said. Rocha was not on site during the raid, which was followed by lawyers from his defense team. This raid it is unnecessary and fruitless," his lawyer Cleber Lopes said, adding that the governor had no connection to the violence. The operation drew criticism from lawyers, as Rocha was head of the Brazilian Bar Association before he became governor. It included 24 warrants covering five states and the capital Brasilia, it said in a statement.

☆ Brazil's VP says development bank should be strengthened to leverage the economy
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-04 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Asked whether this would involve changing the so-called TLP rate, charged by BNDES to lenders, he said only "it is important to create conditions to reduce the interest rate." It replaced the former TJLP rate, which was set by the government below the country's Selic base rate, to subsidize corporate loans. In his inaugural speech, Alckmin said his ministry will have BNDES under its wing, stressing it was essential to strengthen the bank's role to leverage the economy. According to Alckmin, BNDES should act "as a dynamizer of the industry competitiveness and exports, especially those of higher added value." That contrasts with former President Jair Bolsonaro, who centralized policy formulation and decision-making into a single Economy Ministry.

But Jean Paul Prates, nominated on Friday to be chief executive, has been advocating for higher investments in renewables. "Petrobras is a company for the long run and cannot just keep exploring sub-salt oil and paying dividends," Prates said in a press conference this month. Prates, a senator for the past four years, will become the first politician to hold a high-ranking office at Petrobras in several years. Petrobras, Prates and the transition team's press officer did not immediately respond to requests for comment. Prates has defended higher Petrobras investments in the refining sector as a way to secure Brazil's fuel supply.

REUTERS/Adriano MachadoBRASILIA, Dec 9 (Reuters) - Brazil's leftist President-elect Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva on Friday picked a trusted ally, former Sao Paulo Mayor Fernando Haddad, as his finance minister, ending days of speculation over a key ministerial appointment. Lula is set to take office on Jan. 1 after narrowly defeating far-right incumbent Jair Bolsonaro in October. After the nomination of Haddad, a stalwart of Lula's Workers Party (PT), Brazil's real , fell as much as 1.3% against the dollar before paring losses. As the mayor of Brazil's largest city from 2013 to 2016, Haddad renegotiated its debt with the federal government, reducing it by about 50 billion reais. Since losing his re-election bid as mayor in 2016, Haddad has described himself as a college professor on Twitter.

☆ Bolsonaro challenges Brazil election he lost to Lula
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-23 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro challenged the election he lost in October to leftist rival Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, and is arguing that votes from some machines should be "invalidated" in a complaint that election authorities met with initial skepticism. Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro has challenged the election he lost last month to leftist rival Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, arguing votes from some machines should be "invalidated" in a complaint that election authorities met with initial skepticism. Brazil's currency deepened losses after news of the electoral complaint, closing 1.3% weaker against the U.S. dollar. Gleisi Hoffmann, the president of Lula's Workers Party (PT), described Bolsonaro's election complaint as "chicanery." "The election was decided in the vote and Brazil needs peace to build a better future."

☆ Key Brazil senator pushing to waive at least $19 bln from spending cap
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-23 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

BRASILIA, Nov 23 (Reuters) - Brazilian Senator Marcelo Castro said on Wednesday that a constitutional amendment backed by President-elect Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva must exempt at least 100 billion reais ($19 billion) from a constitutional spending cap next year. In an interview with Reuters, Castro, the key lawmaker handling 2023 budget talks, said the initial idea of permanently excluding the "Bolsa Familia" welfare program from the spending ceiling had "lost a lot of strength." Lula's transition team first proposed to remove the Bolsa Familia program from the spending cap indefinitely, opening space for 175 billion reais in new spending. The initial proposal also removed some public investments from the cap, opening room for another 23 billion reais in public spending next year. ($1 = 5.3907 reais)Reporting by Ricardo Brito and Bernardo Caram; Writing by Marcela Ayres; Editing by David GregorioOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ How a maverick Brazil lawmaker helped Lula beat Bolsonaro's propaganda machine
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-10 | by ( Gabriel Stargardter | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +6 min

RIO DE JANEIRO, Nov 10 (Reuters) - To bring down far-right Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro, Andre Janones had to fight fire with fire. Janones also raised eyebrows among some in Lula's Workers Party (PT) for his vulgar attacks on Bolsonaro and his allies. One senior Lula aide defended the role of Janones, saying he could tread where the official campaign did not dare. He was the most prominent Lula ally to drop the gloves in a bruising run-off race that took even Bolsonaro's campaign by surprise. Despite his hell-raising, Janones has not lost sight of digital media as a public service.

SAO PAULO, Nov 1 (Reuters) - Brazilian President-elect Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva will participate in this month's COP27 United Nations climate summit in Egypt, the head of his political party said on Tuesday. He defeated President Jair Bolsonaro, a right-wing nationalist who has overseen rising deforestation and appointed climate change skeptics as ministers. Gleisi Hoffman, the head of Lula's Workers Party, on Tuesday confirmed he would attend COP27. Egypt's President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi also invited Lula to attend the summit in a message congratulating him on his election victory. "I have absolute certainty that...various national representatives will request to meet with President Lula," Teixeira said, adding that she was being directly consulted on the matter.

☆ Lula's running mate Alckmin to manage Brazil's government transition
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-01 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

SAO PAULO, Nov 1 (Reuters) - Brazil's Vice President-elect Geraldo Alckmin will coordinate the transition to the future government led by Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva and is aiming to start it on Thursday, the head of Lula's Workers Party, Gleisi Hoffmann, said on Tuesday. She said she will speak again about the transition with Ciro Nogueira, chief of staff to outgoing President Jair Bolsonaro, who has yet to concede defeat after losing Sunday's tight race to Lula. The president-elect will take office on Jan. 1. Reporting by Lisandra Paraguassu; Writing by Peter Frontini; Editing by Chris ReeseOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

[1/2] Brazil's former President and presidential candidate Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva and Sao Paulo Governor candidate Fernando Haddad react at an election night gathering on the day of the Brazilian presidential election run-off, in Sao Paulo, Brazil, October 30, 2022. Defeated President Jair Bolsonaro had not made public remarks more than 17 hours after the race was called. Some of his key allies have recognized publicly that Lula had won the race, easing concerns of contested election results. "There will be no transition problem, even if Bolsonaro reacts badly, most of his allies have already recognized Lula's victory". Francisco Levy, chief strategist at Empiricus Investimentos, said a favorable international reaction to Lula may help markets on the short term.

Most speculation has focused on who will be his finance minister, which will be a major signal to investors of his commitment to fiscal discipline. If Lula has settled on his pick, he has not yet told even his closes aides. "He banned any talk of this because in a tight election, anticipating names could have a negative impact," said a senior member of Lula's Workers Party who requested anonymity. Meirelles was finance minister in the government that replaced impeached President Dilma Rousseff in 2016, drawing lasting ire from some in the Workers Party. She would be a strong pick for agriculture minister, sources said, as she comes from farm state Mato Grosso do Sul, although she has said publicly she would rather be education minister.

☆ Bolsonaro, Lula trade blows in bruising final Brazil election debate
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-29 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/6] People observe a debate ahead of the runoff election between Brazil's President and candidate for re-election Jair Bolsonaro and former President and current candidate Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, in Sao Paulo, Brazil, October 28, 2022. REUTERS/Mariana GreifRIO DE JANEIRO, Oct 29 (Reuters) - Brazil's right-wing President Jair Bolsonaro and his leftist election rival, Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, traded barbs late on Friday in their final televised debate ahead of Sunday's tense runoff vote. But Bolsonaro outperformed opinion polls in the first-round vote this month, and many analysts say the election could go either way. In their first head-to-head debate this month, Lula blasted Bolsonaro's handling of a pandemic in which nearly 700,000 Brazilians have died, while Bolsonaro focused on the graft scandals that tarnished the reputation of Lula's Workers Party. Lula vowed to revive those boom times, while Bolsonaro suggested current social programs are more effective.

☆ Bolsonaro-Lula presidential race down to the wire in Brazil, polls show
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-29 | by ( Anthony Boadle | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

A survey by pollster MDA showed Lula's edge slipping to just 2 percentage points, equal to the margin of error for the poll commissioned by transport sector lobby CNT. But Bolsonaro outperformed opinion polls in the first-round vote on Oct. 2, and many analysts say the election could go either way. The final opinion surveys by pollsters IPEC and AtlasIntel, however, showed Lula holding a stable and slightly larger lead. AtlasIntel, among the most accurate pollsters in the first round, showed Lula's lead holding at 7 percentage points. Lula vowed to revive those boom times, while Bolsonaro suggested current social programs are more effective.

☆ Brazil's Lula and Bolsonaro statistically tied in presidential race -poll
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-19 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Supporters of Brazil's President and candidate for re-election Jair Bolsonaro and supporters of Brazil's former President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva campaign together on a street during an election campaign in Brasilia, Brazil October 13, 2022. REUTERS/Ueslei Marcelino/File PhotoSAO PAULO, Oct 19 (Reuters) - Brazil's presidential race has narrowed to a 4-percentage-point gap between leftist front-runner Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva and far-right incumbent President Jair Bolsonaro, and they are now statistically tied, according to a poll published on Wednesday. Datafolha said Lula now has 49% of voter support against 45% for Bolsonaro less than two weeks from the second-round runoff on Oct. 30, compared to 49% and 44% respectively in the previous poll five days ago. The poll has a margin of error of 2 percentage points up or down, meaning both could mathematically be tied at 47%. It was the first Datafolha survey since the presidential debate on Sunday, where Bolsonaro attacked corruption scandals under Lula's Workers Party, which governed from 2003 to 2016.

In one line of attack, Lula allies dug up a 2016 interview in which Bolsonaro said he was willing to eat human flesh in an unspecified indigenous ritual. In another, they circulated old images of Bolsonaro speaking at Masonic lodges, considered pagan temples by some of his evangelical Christian allies. The president won court injunctions that took that attack ad off the air and kept the subject out of a debate with Lula last Sunday. But every week that passes without Bolsonaro gaining ground is a battle won by Lula, who was Brazil's president from 2003 to 2010. "The focus now is to attack Lula and trigger fears of him returning to power," said a second Bolsonaro campaign source.

☆ Lula plans broad Brazil consumer debt renegotiation, adviser says
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-13 | by ( Marcela Ayres | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

BRASILIA, Oct 13 (Reuters) - Brazilian presidential candidate Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva has proposed a broad consumer debt renegotiation program backed by government guarantees, aimed at relief for lower-income families if he wins an Oct. 30 runoff election, a senior adviser said. Renegotiated debts would be partially covered by a government guarantee fund of 7-16 billion reais, Mello said. Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com Register"These are very reasonable amounts for the government to contribute," he added. The details of the plan, described broadly in Lula's leftist presidential platform, come after right-wing incumbent Jair Bolsonaro announced a debt renegotiation program for some 4 million clients of state bank Caixa Econômica Federal. But they are also studying strategies to encourage restructuring of bank debt at lower interest rates by reducing lenders' compulsory deposits.

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