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BRASILIA, March 30 (Reuters) - Brazil's far-right former President Jair Bolsonaro, who never conceded defeat in last year's election, returns from self-imposed exile in Florida on Thursday to lead the opposition to leftist President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva. Bolsonaro left for the United States two days before he was due to hand over the presidential sash to Lula on Jan. 1. His return to Brazil is eagerly awaited by the party's leader Valdemar Costa Neto, who wants Bolsonaro to become the leader of the opposition to the Lula administration and lead the PL into municipal elections next year. "Bolsonaro will lead the opposition and travel around Brazil preaching the party's liberal values and helping the PL grow," he told Reuters, outlining a plan for a right-wing comeback in the 2026 presidential elections. Barreto said her ambitions may provide an outlet for the ex-president's supporters if legal probes lead electoral authorities bar him from seeking office.

☆ Brazil unveils new budget rules to ease market jitters on fiscal discipline
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-30 | by ( Marcela Ayres | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

BRASILIA, March 30 (Reuters) - Brazil's Finance Ministry unveiled on Thursday a proposal for new fiscal rules to balance limits on spending growth with the government's vow to boost social programs and public investment. The new fiscal framework proposed in a Finance Ministry presentation on Thursday combines a looser spending cap with primary budget targets, as reported by Reuters on Wednesday. Spending growth would also be limited to 70% of revenue growth in the prior 12 months. The primary budget target would have a margin of plus or minus 0.25 percentage points. However, the Finance Ministry recently estimated that the shortfall will be 107.6 billion reais, equal to 1.0% of GDP, helped by a jump in expected tax revenue.

BRASILIA, March 29 (Reuters) - The goal of Brazil's new fiscal framework will be a zero primary deficit in 2024, followed by surpluses in subsequent years, as President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva seeks a sustainable trajectory for the country's public debt, government sources told Reuters on Wednesday. According to one of the sources, the primary surplus will be equivalent to 0.5% of GDP in 2024, rising to 1% of GDP in 2025. The new framework will combine a target for primary results with a spending rule and will have adjustment mechanisms in case of noncompliance. Sources spoke anonymously, as the topic is being addressed in private conversations with congressmen. Talking to reporters, Padilha said that the leaders of Brazil's Congress have indicated that, once submitted, the fiscal rules should be quickly approved.

☆ Brazil's Bolsonaro says he will not lead opposition, but will work with his party
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-29 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

BRASILIA, March 29 (Reuters) - Brazil's former President Jair Bolsonaro said on Wednesday he will not lead the opposition to President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, but will collaborate with his political party, the conservative Liberal Party. "I will not lead any opposition. I will help my party as a person with experience," he said. Bolsonaro added he plans to travel across Brazil in an effort to help his party in local elections next year. Reporting by Maria Carolina Marcello; Editing by Sarah Morland and Brendan O'BoyleOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

[1/3] A 3D printed Meta logo is seen in front of displayed Google logo in this illustration taken on November 2, 2021. If upheld, their appeals could establish jurisprudence for future cases concerning liability for internet content, at a time when social media companies are under pressure in Brazil due to a surge of political disinformation. According to Ruf, declaring it unconstitutional would increase removals of subjective content, including critical content that is important for democratic public debate. In mid-March, Brazil's government said it was planning to regulate internet platforms to reduce misinformation but also to tax platforms making money from advertising. Google Brasil lawyer Guilherme Sanchez said the company does not wait for court orders to remove content from its platforms.

[1/3] A 3D printed Meta logo is seen in front of displayed Google logo in this illustration taken on November 2, 2021. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File PhotoBRASILIA, March 28 (Reuters) - Meta Platforms Inc (META.O) and Alphabet Inc's Google (GOOGL.O) defended before the Supreme Court on Tuesday a Brazilian law that holds Internet platforms are not responsible for content posted by users unless they are subject to a court order. If upheld, their appeals could establish jurisprudence that will apply to future cases concerning the responsibility for Internet content, at a time when social media companies are under pressure in Brazil due to a surge in the spread of political disinformation. Google Brasil lawyer Guilherme Sanchez said the company does not wait for court orders to remove content from its platforms. By contrast, in the same period Google received just 1,700 requests for the removal of content from its products.

Brazilian digital payments company StoneCo could yield some big gains for investors, according to Citi. Analyst Gabriel Gusan upgraded the company to buy from neutral with a price target of $13 per share. That target represents 40% upside from the stock's last closing price of $9.18 per share. A Brazilian central bank survey last month showed economists expect rate cuts to start in November. The firm's main focus is serving digital payments solutions to small businesses and has roughly 400,000 clients, Gusan said.

☆ Brazil's monetary policy director leaves office amid government uncertainty over replacement
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-27 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

The central bank stated in a note that Serra's departure follows the end of his term on Feb. 28. The day after Serra's departure, the director of Economic Policy, Diogo Guillen, began temporarily accumulating his function, a common practice at the central bank until substitutions are made. Supervision director Paulo Souza, whose term also expired at the end of February, remains in his current position. Under a 2021 law granting formal autonomy to the central bank, Governor Roberto Campos Neto will remain in office until December 2024. Lula, who has criticized Campos Neto and the central bank for keeping interest rates high to combat inflation, will eventually replace all nine members of the bank's board, which decides monetary policy.

☆ China to decide new date for Brazil's Lula visit, agreements postponed
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-26 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

March 26 (Reuters) - Brazil's Agriculture Minister Carlos Favaro said on Sunday that the Chinese government would decide on a new date for Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva's visit to the country, adding that the signing of agreements between Beijing and Brasilia has been postponed. "All government actions are postponed, including those of the Agriculture Ministry," Favaro, who arrived in China last week, said during a news conference in Beijing. "When the Chinese government is ready, with an available schedule, the visit will certainly be rescheduled, and we will return to continue signing all memorandums and agreements." The minister said that agreements between Brazilian and Chinese companies are still expected to be announced on March 29. About 240 Brazilian business leaders were initially expected in China, over a third from Brazil's farm sector, which sends the majority of its beef, soybeans, and wood pulp to China.

☆ Brazil's Lula cancels trip to China
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-25 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

BRASILIA, March 25 (Reuters) - Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva has cancelled his trip to China, which was previously scheduled for March 27-31, due to medical reasons, according to his press secretary on Saturday. The press secretary released a medical note stating that after a clinical evaluation, Lula was diagnosed with bacterial and viral bronchopneumonia caused by influenza A, and treatment has been initiated. "Despite clinical improvement, the medical service of the Presidency of the Republic recommends postponing the trip to China until the viral transmission cycle ends," the note stated. Reporting by Marcela Ayres in Brasilia Editing by Matthew LewisOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Lula to seek Chinese semiconductor technology, investment in Beijing
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-24 | by ( Lisandra Paraguassu | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

BRASILIA, March 24 (Reuters) - Brazil will seek Chinese technology and investment to develop a semiconductor industry in the South American country despite U.S. attempts to discourage association with China in this area, a senior presidential adviser told Reuters. Semiconductors will be a priority on President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva's visit to China next week. Lula's trip will seek Chinese cooperation in fostering Brazil's sustainable development and digital economy. We are not afraid of the big bad wolf," he commented, when asked about U.S. discouragement of technology deals with China. Lula is expected to visit the factory of Huawei Technologies, the Chinese telecommunications giant that has been operating in Brazil for 20 years.

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.

☆ Ex-Brazil president Bolsonaro is hoarding a stash of jewels Saudi Arabia gave him — but was just ordered to give them away
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-23 | by ( Tom Porter | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Brazil's watchdog ordered former President Jair Bolsonaro to hand over valuable jewels. He received the gift on a trip to Saudi Arabia, and another stash was seized by customs. Jewelry gifted to former Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro and former first lady Michelle Bolsonaro by the Saudi government and seized by customs officials. It later emerged that a second stash of jewels, valued at around $75,000, also entered the country undetected, and were in Bolsonaro's possession. It is this this second stash that the watchdog has ordered Bolsonaro to hand back, reports say.

☆ Brazil central bank holds rates, points to worse inflation expectations
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-22 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

BRASILIA, March 22 (Reuters) - Brazil's central bank on Wednesday held interest rates steady for the fifth consecutive time, pointing to worse inflation expectations, and acknowledged a more challenging scenario amid fears of a global banking crisis. The bank's rate-setting committee, known as Copom, kept its Selic benchmark interest rate at 13.75%. The decision, which defied intense pressure from the new government of President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva to reduce borrowing costs, matched the expectations of all 30 respondents in a Reuters poll. Reporting by Marcela Ayres Editing by Chris ReeseOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Lula departs for China this weekend, but many executives and lobby groups have traveled ahead of the president, government officials said. JBS representatives said the company aims to bolster commercial ties with China, a key trading partner. In a statement, ABPA said they are seeking recognition from Beijing that Rio Grande do Sul and Parana are free of foot-and-mouth disease without vaccination, in order to export pork with bones and pork offal. China buys 44% of Brazil's pork exports by volume and around 14% of its chicken exports, according to ABPA data for the first two months of 2023. Some 62% of Brazil's beef exports went to China last year.

☆ Brazil central bank holds rates, flags increased inflation expectations
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-22 | by ( Marcela Ayres | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

The bank's rate-setting committee, known as Copom, maintained its Selic benchmark interest rate at 13.75%. "The Committee emphasizes that it will persist until the disinflationary process consolidates and inflation expectations anchor around its targets, which have shown additional deterioration, especially at longer horizons," they added. The central bank acknowledged the worsening global environment amid banking turmoil, but emphasized recent data on global activity and inflation have remained resilient. Meanwhile, the central bank's inflation expectations have risen to 5.8% for 2023 and 3.6% for 2024. Lula has repeatedly called for lower borrowing costs, describing the current Selic rate "irresponsible" on Tuesday.

☆ 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 looks to regulate monetized content on Internet -official
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-17 | by ( Victor Pereira | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

SAO PAULO, March 17 (Reuters) - The Brazilian government is studying whether to regulate Internet platforms with content that earns revenue such as advertising, its secretary for digital policies, Joao Brant, said on Friday. The idea would be for a regulator to hold such platforms, not consumers, accountable for monetized content, Brant told Reuters. Platforms would not be held responsible for content individually, but for how diligent they are in protecting the "digital environment," he said in an interview. Brant did not detail what the regulatory body would look like, but said the government wants to regulate monetized content and prevent the platforms from spreading misinformation. Meta questioned its responsibility for removing content without a court decision in a case involving a fake Facebook profile.

☆ Brazil's Lula to go to China with 240 business representatives, says official
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-17 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

BRASILIA, March 17 (Reuters) - Brazil's President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva will visit China this month accompanied by a delegation of 240 business representatives, including 90 from agriculture sector, a senior Foreign Ministry official said on Friday. Trade promotion secretary Daniel Fernandes said at a press briefing that all the government's ministries will be represented on the March 26-30 visit to Beijing and Shanghai. The ministry's Secretary for Asia, Pacific and Russia, Eduardo Saboia, said Brazil is hoping to diversify its trade relationship with China, the largest customer for Brazilian exports, mainly soy beans and iron ore. Reporting by Anthony BoadleOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Brazil to pay debt to multilateral organizations in 2023
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-16 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

BRASILIA, March 16 (Reuters) - Brazil's government will pay outstanding debts of 2.6 billion reais ($490.6 million) to multilateral organizations in 2023, reinforcing its commitment to global forums, the Planning Ministry said on Thursday. The amount corresponds to debts to "various organizations" inherited from former President Jair Bolsonaro's administration, which leftist President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva will settle. The ministry said 480 million reais would be paid off this month. The main debts are with the United Nations ($58.8 million) and for U.N. peacekeeping missions ($264 million). Brazil also is in arrears with the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), which could threaten its process of accession to the Paris-based rich countries club.

☆ US would handle an extradition request for Brazil's Bolsonaro 'expeditiously' - official
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-15 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

WASHINGTON, March 15 (Reuters) - A senior U.S. official declined on Wednesday at a Senate hearing to comment on the status in the United States of former far-right Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro, but said any such request from Brazil would be handled "expeditiously." Speaking at a Senate Foreign Relations Committee on the future of relations with Brazil, Assistant Secretary of State for Western Hemisphere Affairs Brian Nichols said: "We would handle any request from the Brazilian government expeditiously." Committee Chairman Robert Menendez said Bolsonaro "continues to spew disinformation about Brazil's election" from Florida. The United States is expected to join the multilateral Amazon Fund to help sustainability projects in the Amazon. Following Lula's visit to Washington, the U.S government plans to make an initial donation of $50 million to the fund.

☆ Brazil's Lula, citing war, will not visit Russia or Ukraine
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-14 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

BRASILIA, March 14 (Reuters) - Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva said on Tuesday he will not visit Russia or Ukraine due to the ongoing war but he remained committed to a peaceful resolution to the conflict. The leftist leader added at an event in the capital Brasilia that the conflict triggered by Russia's invasion of Ukraine should be unthinkable. "In the 21st century, it shouldn't be possible that we have war over small things," he said. The comments follow a video call between Lula and Ukraine's President Volodymir Zelenskiy, in early March when Zelenskiy invited Lula to visit Kiev. In previous remarks, Lula has advocated the creation of a group of countries that can mediate a peaceful solution to the conflict.

☆ Brazil's agriculture chief plans China trip to discuss lifting beef export suspension
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-08 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

BRASILIA, March 8 (Reuters) - Brazil's Agriculture Minister Carlos Favaro said on Wednesday he will move forward a planned trip to China to later in March as Latin America's largest economy aims to resume beef exports halted by a case of mad cow's disease. Favaro said he would visit China ahead of President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva's March 28 scheduled visit. Shipments of beef to China were suspended following the confirmation of an atypical case of mad cow disease in the Brazilian state of Para in February. The Brazilian government expects to resume beef exports to China in the next few days and is planning to request a revision of the protocol that triggered the ban, a government official said on Tuesday. Reporting by Victor Borges; Writing by Carolina Pulice; Editing by Lincoln Feast.

☆ Brazil's Lula says judiciary should force businesses to pay equal salaries
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-08 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

[1/4] Brazil's President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva speaks during a ceremony to mark the International Women's Day at Planalto Palace in Brasilia, Brazil, March 8, 2023. REUTERS/Adriano MachadoSAO PAULO, March 8 (Reuters) - The Brazilian judiciary should work on compelling businesses to pay equal wages for men and women in the same roles, Brazil's President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva said on Wednesday. In an event marking International Women's Day, Lula also presented a bill to promote wage equality between women and men, among other measures directed toward women. "Whoever works in the same post, with the same abilities, has the right to earn the same salary," Lula added. In a later Twitter post, Lula said the bill also includes measures encouraging greater wage transparency.

☆ After steep climb in rates, Latam central banks show no signs of reversal
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-07 | by ( Isabel Woodford | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

The Brazilian central bank's weekly survey of private economists last year foresaw cuts in June 2023, but a recent survey pushed the forecast back to November. The central bank's poll of traders now expects cuts won't come until May, likely making Chile the first mover. "We've had a quite a few hawkish comments from central banks across the region, pushing back against the idea of rate cuts," she added. That gives central banks the message that it's not quite time to think about a more relaxed monetary policy," he said. Political unrest in Peru may have also moved back the goalpost for cuts, with the central bank warning that protests have caused supply chain disruption and impacted consumer prices.

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