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☆ Latin America, Caribbean call for more international funding at CELAC summit
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-25 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

BUENOS AIRES, Jan 24 (Reuters) - Countries from Latin America and the Caribbean on Tuesday called for more international funding in the region following economic and climate crises, in a final declaration after a summit held in the Argentine capital of Buenos Aires. The 111-point "Declaration of Buenos Aires" from the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States' (CELAC) seventh summit described how effects of COVID-19, climate change and the war in Ukraine had rippled across the region. "We express our concern that several countries emerged from the pandemic with higher levels of public debt," it said. Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro sent a recorded message saying he had chosen not to attend due to "permanent conspiracies, the permanent threat, calculated ambushes." Reporting by Lucila Sigal; Writing by Sarah Morland; Editing by Christopher CushingOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ The far-right wore Brazil's national soccer team jersey during anti-democratic riots
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-10 | by ( Azmi Haroun | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

The Brazilian national team's soccer jersey has been appropriated by Bolsonaro for years. When Brazil's national team won the 2019 Copa America, Bolsonaro sat squarely with the players and trophy, smiling ear to ear as he parroted the win. "The Brazilian national team shirt is a symbol of the joy of our people," the CBF tweeted on Monday. "Brazil's yellow shirts shimmered and sparkled in the blistering white sunlight of the Mexican noon — the appointed time of kick-offs to support European TV schedules." "We can't be ashamed of wearing our green and yellow shirt," da Silva said in late November, per The Guardian.

☆ 'A cowardly and vile attack': Over 400 arrested after Bolsonaro supporters storm Brazil's Congress
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-09 | by ( Sam Meredith | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

World leaders condemned what they described as a "cowardly and vile" attack after thousands of supporters of former Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro invaded the country's Congress, the Supreme Court and the presidential palace. Brazil's security forces have regained control of the country's political institutions and Brasilia governor Ibaneis Rocha said more than 400 people had been arrested as of Sunday evening. Lula sealed a remarkable return to Brazil's presidency late last year, securing 50.9% of the runoff vote to defeat far-right incumbent Bolsonaro. Many of Bolsonaro's supporters refused to accept the result, however, and political analysts have long feared a U.S.-style attack on the country's prominent government buildings. Lula blamed Bolsonaro for "encouraging" the riots, saying there were several speeches by the former president to incite Sunday's attack.

Speaking to reporters, Rui Costa, also a minister in Lula's cabinet, said government meetings were scheduled for Tuesday and the Finance Ministry and Management Ministry will announce measures this week. Hundreds of supporters of former President Jair Bolsonaro stormed and vandalized the Congress, the Supreme Court, and the presidential palace on Sunday. The attacks on state institutions are considered the worst since the country's return to democracy in the 1980s. The minister participated in emergency meetings with Lula and others on Monday. Reporting by Bernardo Caram; Editing by Steven Grattan, Andrea Ricci and Kenneth MaxwellOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Criticism of Lula's economic plans mounts as Brazil markets tank
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-04 | by ( Gabriel Araujo | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Haddad, a former mayor of Sao Paulo, took office vowing to restore public accounts and with the challenge of presenting a credible fiscal framework after Congress passed a giant Lula social spending package. Markets reacted badly to Haddad's first days in office, especially after Lula ordered a budget-busting extension to a fuel tax exemption which Haddad had publicly opposed. "Haddad learned on his first day in office that he will be a decorative figure, a sort of task worker for President Lula," the conservative daily said in an editorial. On Tuesday, markets were further rattled by remarks by Lula's social security and labour ministers. That was compounded when he said Lula's government would need to review the investor-friendly pension reform approved by Bolsonaro's administration.

☆ Brazil markets fall after Lula takes office vowing to end poverty
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-02 | by ( Anthony Boadle | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

[1/2] Brazil's President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, his wife Rosangela "Janja" da Silva and Chief Raoni walk through the ramp of the Planalto Palace after Lula's swearing-in ceremony, in Brasilia, Brazil, January 1, 2023. Lula narrowly defeated far-right former President Jair Bolsonaro in October, swinging South America's largest nation back on a left-wing track. Lula spent his first day in office meeting with more than a dozen heads of state who attended his inauguration. In his swearing-in speech to Congress, Lula said he was not seeking revenge, but any crimes committed under Bolsonaro would be held accountable with due legal process. ($1 = 5.3458 reais)Reporting by Anthony Boadle and Gabriel Araujo in Brasilia Editing by Matthew LewisOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Brazil markets tumble on Lula's first full day in office
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-02 | by ( Anthony Boadle | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

Haddad, who is seeking to dispel market fears that he might not maintain fiscal discipline, took office on Monday, pledging to control spending. "The policies remind us of Dilma Rousseff's government rather than Lula's," Gracia said, referring to Lula's handpicked successor, who was impeached while in office. Allies said Lula's newfound social conscience was the result of his 580 days in prison, Reuters reported on Sunday. Lula kicks off his third presidential term after persuading Congress to pass a one-year, 170 billion-reais increased social spending package, in line with his campaign promises. Lula spent his first day in office meeting with more than a dozen heads of state who attended his inauguration.

Jailed for graft in 2018 - the year right-wing former President Jair Bolsonaro was elected - Lula's convictions were overturned in 2019, allowing him to oust Bolsonaro in October's election. The more ideological Lula who emerged from jail in 2019 should not be a cause for concern, friends and allies said. Lula's spokesman Jose Chrispiniano said the president supported fiscal responsibility and believes that strengthening the economy is the best way to combat poverty. "Good morning, President Lula," his devotees would chant as the day began, followed by "Good night, President Lula," as he went to bed. From his 15-square-meter cell on the third floor of the Federal Police headquarters in Curitiba, Lula set about reorganizing the PT and managing his legal defense.

[1/5] Federal prison officers take position in front of federal police headquarters during an action by Federal Police and agents of the Civil Police of Brasilia, to serve arrests and seizure warrants issued by the Federal Supreme Court in Brasilia, Brazil, Brazil December 29, 2022. REUTERS/Adriano MachadoBRASILIA, Dec 29 (Reuters) - Brazilian police said they arrested four people and carried out nationwide raids on Thursday in investigations into an alleged coup attempt during riots by supporters of defeated far-right President Jair Bolsonaro. Brazilian authorities, led by the Supreme Court, have been cracking down on a small but committed minority of Bolsonaro supporters who refuse to acknowledge leftist President-elect Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva's election victory and are calling for a military coup. The federal police said on Thursday they were serving 32 search and arrest warrants in eight states under Supreme Court orders. Two arrest warrants were served in the northwestern state of Rondonia, one in Rio de Janeiro and one in Brasilia, Mazzotti said in a press conference.

☆ Brazil's oil firms to invest $7.7 billion in onshore fields by 2029
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-23 | by ( Marta Nogueira | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

RIO DE JANEIRO, Dec 23 (Reuters) - Brazil's small- and medium-sized oil firms are set to invest some 40 billion reais ($7.74 billion) in onshore fields by 2029, according to a survey by the country's independent oil and gas producers association Abpip. The move to buy fields from Petrobras has boosted the onshore oil and gas industry in Brazil. Petrobras had sidelined some assets after shifting focus to developing its prolific pre-salt fields, Abpip's executive secretary, Anabal Santos, told Reuters. Output from onshore fields is now expected to increase to 500,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day by 2029, up from 150,000 in 2016, he said. The state-run firm has already sold some offshore assets, Santos said.

☆ World Bank to lend $500 million to help Brazil meet climate goals
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-23 | by ( Steven Grattan | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

The initiative, in collaboration with Brazilian state-controlled lender Banco do Brasil, adopts an approach to lending linked to sustainability to help Brazil meet its climate goals and deliver "robust" mitigation benefits, a bank statement said. At the start of December, the World Bank and its partners launched a global tracking system to clean up the opaque market for carbon credits and help developing countries raise much-needed climate finance quickly and more cheaply. "Up to 90 million tCO2e in emission reductions are expected by 2030, the equivalent to about 4.5% of what Brazil needs to stay on track with its net-zero commitments," the World Bank said. "Brazil has significant potential to become a global leader in the transition to a low-carbon economy", said Johannes Zutt, World Bank country director for Brazil. Banco do Brasil will be able to offer its clients packages that integrate financing with support to access carbon markets through a “one-stop shop”, as the World Bank explained it.

☆ Brazil's incoming finance chief Haddad names ministry officials
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-22 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

SAO PAULO, Dec 22 (Reuters) - Brazil's incoming Finance Minister Fernando Haddad on Thursday announced a fresh batch of officials to lead the economic team of President-elect Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva's government. In a press conference, Haddad said Rogerio Ceron, his finance secretary when he himself served as Sao Paulo's mayor, would lead Brazil's Treasury. Ceron recently headed Sao Paulo Parcerias, a city government-linked agency involved in projects related to concessions, privatization and public-private partnerships. Haddad also confirmed Marcos Barbosa Pinto as the finance ministry's new secretary for economic reforms, Guilherme Mello as economic policy secretariat, and Robinson Barreirinhas as secretary of the federal revenue service. Haddad said the "quartet" he presented on Thursday would boost the finance ministry's efficiency and find solutions to the country's problems.

☆ Bank floats $10 bln Brazilian bond plan to halt Amazon deforestation
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-19 | by ( Marc Jones | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

LONDON, Dec 19 (Reuters) - Strategists at a UK bank have proposed the idea of a super-sized $10 billion Brazilian government bond that would be specifically designed to help halt the destruction of the Amazon rainforest. Stopping deforestation of the Amazon, which absorbs vast amounts of planet-warming greenhouse gas, is part of Brazilian President-elect Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva's sweeping plan to reclaim leadership on climate change measures. Money raised via sustainability-linked debt can be used for almost any purpose. "As a reference, a 2034 Brazilian bond is currently yielding around 6.35%, making the step up/down feature potentially financially material for Brazil," Vivanco's initial outline of the plan last week said. "If Lula goes around the world selling this bond, you would have to have a reason not to be part of it," Vivanco said.

☆ Brazil's spending package affecting inflation expectations, says central bank
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-15 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

BRASILIA, Dec 15 (Reuters) - Brazil's central bank already believes a recently proposed spending package is partly affecting closely watched inflation expectations, said the bank's chief Roberto Campos Neto on Thursday. We see it in implicit inflation and in the structure of long-term interest rates and, when that happens, expectations are always contaminated," he said, adding long-term inflation expectations were in part affected. For its current inflation projections, the central bank has considered a fiscal expansion of 130 billion reais next year extracted from market estimates, said Campos Neto. The central bank held interest rates at 13.75% this month, after a September pause to an aggressive tightening that lifted rates from a 2% record low in March 2021 to battle inflation. Campos Neto pointed out that coordination between fiscal and monetary policies is "very important," and the central bank needs proper conditions to lower rates.

☆ Lula ticket sues Bolsonaro and sons for abuses during Brazil's election
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-09 | by ( Ricardo Brito | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

BRASILIA, Dec 8 (Reuters) - President-elect Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva's election team sued President Jair Bolsonaro, his running mate and two of his sons for abuse of power and attacks on Brazil's voting system, both during the October election campaign. The two lawsuits, filed in the electoral court, seek to ban the four men from running for office in future. During campaigning, Bolsonaro repeatedly criticized the country's electronic voting system, claiming without evidence that it was open to fraud. The president's office did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Reuters could not reach the president's sons for comment.

☆ Venezuela's Maduro could miss Lula inauguration
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-02 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

BRASILIA, Dec 2 (Reuters) - Heads of state and governments will be attending President-elect Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva's inauguration on Jan. 1, but one might have trouble entering Brazil - Venezuela's leftist president, Nicolas Maduro. Lula's transition team have not sent out invitations yet, but aides said that all countries with diplomatic ties to Brazil would be invited. An order signed in August 2019 under outgoing far-right President Jair Bolsonaro barred high-ranking Venezuelan government officials from visiting Brazil. She plans to leave Brazil before Lula becomes president. "She wasn't going to wait and give them the chance to tell her to leave," said a spokesperson for Belandria.

BRASILIA, Nov 30 (Reuters) - Brazilian President-elect Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva's transition team has held meetings with the soy industry to discuss a new pact to stop deforestation in the Cerrado savanna, modeled on an agreement for the Amazon, a Lula adviser said on Wednesday. In 2006, soy traders voluntarily agreed to stop buying soy from areas deforested in the Amazon after a certain date. Since then, soy farming has expanded rapidly in the Cerrado, where environmental advocates have lobbied for a similar pact. "There are all the pacts that were done in the past - the soy moratorium, the legal wood pact, legal minerals. Minc did not give further details, and the transition team said it was still finalizing its first report to detail Lula's likely future environmental policy.

☆ Lula wants new Brazil police unit to tackle environmental crimes
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-30 | by ( Lisandra Paraguassu | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

BRASLIA, Nov 30 (Reuters) - Brazilian President-elect Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva's incoming administration aims to create a new Federal Police unit focused on environmental crimes, the transition team's public security chief told Reuters. "There is now a specific complexity of environmental crimes, in which there is, a kind of combo of crimes in the Amazon. We no longer have isolated environmental crimes," he said. So the idea is a specialized unit for greater efficiency and greater articulation with neighboring countries"Currently, environmental crimes are tackled by the Federal Police's organized crime department, Dino said. Creating a new unit, he added, would be a "practical proposal, which shows a sense of priority for this environmental issue."

That would surpass the October 2020 peak of 89% in the central bank series dating back to 2006. "It reduces the degree of freedom for the central bank to manage monetary policy," said Ramos. Brazil's central bank has held interest rates at 13.75% since August, after 12 straight hikes that lifted rates from a 2% record low in March 2021. Lula campaigned openly against the constitutional spending cap that limits spending growth to inflation. The proposal also removes some public investments from the cap, opening space for another 23 billion reais in public spending next year.

☆ Brazil crypto law back on agenda as FTX collapse sends shockwaves
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-17 | by ( Isabel Woodford | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

"If there is a good side (to the FTX disaster), it would be that it gets the law prioritized," he told Reuters on Tuesday. Brazil is one of the top 10 active markets globally for crypto, according to 2022 Chainalysis data. "If it's good for Brazilian investors, then it's a good law," he added. FTX filed for bankruptcy last week and is facing scrutiny from U.S. authorities, amid reports that $10 billion in customer assets were shifted from the crypto exchange to FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried's trading company Alameda Research. Dagnoni told Reuters that Mercado Bitcoin, mainly active in Brazil and Portugal, had no exposure to FTX, having developed its own custody solution to store customer assets.

☆ Brazil VP-elect Alckmin vows debt reduction, seeks to appease markets
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-17 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

BRASILIA, Nov 17 (Reuters) - Brazil's incoming government will be fiscally responsible, Vice President-elect Geraldo Alckmin said Thursday, promising a budget surplus and reduction in public debt in effort to quell market unrest over a proposed welfare plan. "The market reaction is momentary. "The framework will be discussed," Alckmin, a former two-time governor of Brazil's Sao Paulo state. "The key issue is a tax reform," which will help spur GDP growth, he said, adding it would be approved as soon as possible, but he gave no deadline. Reporting by Lisandra Paraguassu; Editing by Lisa Shumaker, Brendan O'Boyle and David GregorioOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Brazil's Lula seen favoring leftist Haddad for finance minister, sources say
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-16 | by ( Lisandra Paraguassu | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

REUTERS/Mariana Greif/File PhotoBRASILIA, Nov 16 (Reuters) - Leftist former Sao Paulo Mayor Fernando Haddad is emerging as the front-runner to be Brazilian President-elect Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva's finance minister, three sources told Reuters, although they said no final decision has yet been made. Investors, already jittery over Lula's spending plans, are eager to learn who will be Brazil's next finance minister. Lula is not expected to announce any of his ministers until early December after he returns from Egypt and Portugal trips. Markets tumbled in Brazil last week on concerns that Lula was delaying the naming of his finance minister and disregarding fiscal discipline as he studied ways to bypass the budget spending ceiling. Haddad failed in his bid to be Sao Paulo governor in last month's election, losing out to Bolsonaro's pick for the job.

LONDON/TOKYO, Nov 2 (Reuters) - The dollar slipped on Wednesday as investors awaited a Federal Reserve policy decision amid speculation it might indicate a slowdown in future rate hikes. But for the December meeting, the futures market is split on the odds of a 75- or 50-bps increase. The real was 0.1% higher exchanging hands for 5.14 per dollar. YEN JUMPSThe yen , down a whopping 28% against the dollar this year, outperformed on Wednesday, with traders on alert for possible intervention around the Fed meeting. The BOJ also released minutes of its latest policy meeting, with a member saying the bank must be vigilant for an inflation overshoot, possibly caused by yen weakness.

LONDON/TOKYO, Nov 2 (Reuters) - The U.S. dollar slipped on Wednesday as investors awaited for the U.S. Federal Reserve's policy decision amid speculation it might indicate a slowdown in future rate hikes. But for the December meeting, the futures market is split on the odds of a 75- or 50-bps increase. It will be a difficult balance to strike for Powell," said Daria Parkhomenko, FX strategist at RBC Capital Markets. Against the weakening dollar, the euro and sterling edged up to $0.9889 and $1.1494, respectively. YEN JUMPSThe yen , down a whopping 28% against the U.S. dollar this year, outperformed, with traders on alert for possible intervention around the Fed meeting.

The outcome of Brazil's presidential election Sunday is being hailed as a crucial victory for global climate, with experts saying the country now has an opportunity to curb rampant deforestation of the Amazon rainforest and jump-start a green economy. The 77-year-old has vowed to fight Amazon deforestation and crack down on illegal gold miners, loggers and ranchers who have invaded indigenous land and caused widespread environmental destruction. “Brazil is ready to retake its leadership in the fight against the climate crisis,” Lula said in a victory speech in Sao Paulo, according to Reuters. The vast Amazon rainforest plays a critical role as a carbon sink, absorbing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and releasing oxygen. The findings added new urgency to restore balance to the Amazon and avert the worst consequences of climate change.

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