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WASHINGTON, Nov 23 (Reuters) - Republican Senator Lisa Murkowski and Democratic Representative Mary Peltola of Alaska both won reelection against opponents backed by Donald Trump on Wednesday, the latest high-profile defeats of candidates supported by the former president. Murkowski, 65, has represented Alaska in the Senate since 2002 and built an independent profile as one of the chamber's few centrists. Peltola, the first Alaska Native elected to Congress, beat two Republicans: former vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin and businessman Nick Begich. Tea Party era of politics and helped pave the way for Trump to win the White House. Murkowski and Peltola would have won even under Alaska's old election rules, as they had each won a plurality of votes.

☆ Brazil's Banco Safra buys Alfa financial conglomerate for $192 mln
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-24 | by ( Tatiana Bautzer | ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

SAO PAULO, Nov 23 (Reuters) - Brazilian bank Banco Safra acquired control of financial conglomerate Alfa for 1.03 billion reais ($192.2 million), the bank said in a statement late on Wednesday. Alfa, founded in 1925, was controlled by banker Aloysio Faria, who died in 2020. David Safra, one of the controlling shareholders in Grupo Safra, said the acquisition was an important milestone for the bank. Alfa was advised by Rothschild & Co. Safra's investment bank advised the group. ($1 = 5.3591 reais)Reporting by Tatiana Bautzer; Editing by Bradley PerrettOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Explore Brazil’s African rootsFifty-six percent of Brazilians identified as Black or mixed race in 2021, and race relations here are as complex as they are in the United States, making the Museu Afro Brasil in the city’s glorious Ibirapuera Park a must-see. The museum is at once an exuberant celebration of the contributions that the majority and their ancestors have made to the artistic, intellectual and economic life of the country, and a searing reminder — with the restored remains of a slave ship, instruments of torture and photography of enslaved people — that Brazil was the last country in the Americas to fully abolish slavery, in 1888. Entry is 15 reais, or about $3.

☆ Mexico core inflation higher than expected in early Nov, rate hikes to continue
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-24 | by ( Gabriel Araujo | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

MEXICO CITY, Nov 24 (Reuters) - Mexico's annual consumer prices slowed more than expected during the first half of November, but the core inflation index - which remains a main concern in the country as it grapples with high costs - came in above market forecasts. Data from national statistics agency INEGI showed on Thursday that annual headline inflation in Mexico hit 8.14% in the period, down from 8.53% a month ago and also below consensus of 8.24% in a Reuters poll of economists. The latest inflation figures backed expectations that the local central bank, known as Banxico, would keep hiking interest rates. "Overall, headline inflation continues to edge down in Mexico, but core inflation remains sticky, which will continue to keep policymakers uneasy," said Pantheon Macroeconomics' chief Latin America economist, Andres Abadia. On a monthly basis, Mexico's headline inflation rose 0.56% while the core index was up by 0.34% in mid-November, the statistics agency said.

☆ JPMorgan expects to keep growing in Latin America with improved outlook
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-23 | by ( Tatiana Bautzer | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

SAO PAULO, Nov 23 (Reuters) - JPMorgan Chase & Co (JPM.N) will keep growing in Latin America over the next few years as it expects the region's geopolitical outlook to improve, said Alfonso Eyzaguirre, the bank's chief executive for Latin America and Canada. He expects Latin America to profit from the changes. Latin America also stands to receive a large portion of private investment to tackle climate change, Eyzaguirre added. JPMorgan has been adding headcount and new services for corporate clients in Latin America. Brazil and Britain are the only countries apart from the United States where JPMorgan has retail banking activities.

Magnitsky sanctions aim to punish those accused of corruption or enabling human rights abuses. The U.S. Treasury Department, which is responsible for Magnitsky sanctions, declined to comment. U.S. officials in Brazil and the United States have already begun the process of identifying and investigating specific targets, the source said, with potential punishments ranging from visa blacklists to Global Magnitsky sanctions. It is unclear when or if the United States could sanction specific targets, as the investigations can take a while. Targeting environmental criminals with Global Magnitsky sanctions is unusual but not unprecedented.

☆ Brazil's Trump-backed president is challenging his election loss, weeks after it looked like he was going quietly
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-23 | by ( Sinéad Baker | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Brazil's president challenged his election loss, saying votes cast on some machines should be thrown out. Meanwhile, his supporters have protested the results, saying that he should still rightly be in office. US President Donald Trump (L) speaks with Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro during a dinner at Mar-a-Lago in Palm Beach, Florida, on March 7, 2020. Former US President Donald Trump, who also challenged his presidential election loss in 2021, and claims he should still rightfully be president, endorsed Bolsonaro in his reelection bid last year. Trump backed him again in September 2022, just before the election, saying that people called Bolsonaro a "tropical Trump" and repeatedly urging Brazilians to back him as the election neared.

☆ Bolsonaro contests Brazil election, demands votes be anulled
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-22 | by ( Associated Press | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +6 min

Neither explained how that might have affected election results, but said they were asking the electoral authority to invalidate all votes cast on those machines. Diego Aranha, an associate professor of systems security at Aarhus University in Denmark, who has participated in official security tests of Brazil’s electoral system, agreed. Bolsonaro spent more than a year claiming Brazil’s electronic voting system is prone to fraud, without ever presenting evidence. Brazil began using an electronic voting system in 1996 and election security experts consider such systems less secure than hand-marked paper ballots, because they leave no auditable paper trail. But Brazil’s system has been closely scrutinized by domestic and international experts who have never found evidence of it being exploited to commit fraud.

SAO PAULO, Nov 22 (Reuters) - A journalist covering the soccer World Cup in Qatar on Tuesday said local police hassled him outside a stadium after a regional Brazilian flag was mistaken for an LGBTQ pride flag. He told Reuters that a man wearing a traditional white dress mistook it for the LGBTQ community's rainbow flag when he was leaving the Lusail Stadium after Saudi Arabia's shock 2-1 win over Argentina. "This guy wearing a white dress grabbed the flag, threw it on the ground and started stomping on it. I took my phone to record a video but he grabbed it from my hand and said he would only give it back if I deleted the video," Pereira said. A U.S. journalist said he was briefly detained on Monday when he tried to enter a World Cup stadium in Qatar while wearing a rainbow shirt in support of the LGBTQ community, also claiming his phone was seized.

[1/2] U.S. House of Representatives Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) arrives as House Republicans gather for leadership elections at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, U.S., November 15, 2022. REUTERS/Leah Millis/File PhotoWASHINGTON, Nov 22 (Reuters) - The top Republican in the U.S. House of Representatives, Kevin McCarthy, on Tuesday called on Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas to step down, warning that the House may try to impeach him when Republicans take the majority next year. "Our country may never recover from Secretary Mayorkas' dereliction of duty," McCarthy told reporters in El Paso, Texas, on Tuesday after speaking with border officials. "If Secretary Mayorkas does not resign, House Republicans will investigate every order, every action and every failure (to) determine whether we can begin (an) impeachment inquiry," he said. He became the first Latino and foreign-born Homeland Security chief when he was confirmed to the role in February 2021.

☆ Brazil transition team asks Bolsonaro govt to halt Petrobras asset sales
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-22 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Companies Petroleo Brasileiro SA Petrobras FollowNov 22 (Reuters) - The transition team for Brazil's President-elect Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva asked the current administration to halt ongoing asset sales by state-run oil giant Petrobras (PETR4.SA) until a new Mines and Energy Minister is appointed, a member of the group said on Tuesday. The remarks by Professor Mauricio Tolmasquim, tapped last week to participate in the mining and energy group of the transition process, came after a meeting in Brasilia. A second member of the team, Senator Jean Paul Prates, said that Lula was expected to make decision on who would be Petrobras' next chief executive by early December. Lula is set to take office from incumbent President Jair Bolsonaro on Jan. 1. Reporting by Roberto Samora in Sao Paulo; Editing by Steven GrattanOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Brazilian Wins Race to Head Latin America’s Top Development Bank
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-21 | by ( Samantha Pearson | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

SÃO PAULO—The Inter-American Development Bank elected Brazil’s Ilan Goldfajn on Sunday as president of Latin America’s largest development bank, the first Brazilian to hold the role in the institution’s 63-year history. The election of Mr. Goldfajn, a widely respected former central banker, comes at a time when the region depends ever more on the institution as it emerges from the Covid-19 pandemic that killed over 1.7 million people in Latin America and the Caribbean and plunged millions more into poverty.

☆ Lula to start job interviews for Petrobras overhaul, sources say
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-21 | by ( Sabrina Valle | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

Lula, who takes office on Jan. 1, has already signaled plans for a dramatic overhaul of Petroleo Brasileiro SA (PETR4.SA), as the company is formally known. Into the dustbin, according to Lula and his advisers: the company's privatization. To pull off that reboot of Petrobras strategy, Lula plans for sweeping turnover in the company's first- and second-tier management ranks, said people familiar with his thinking. SHORT LISTAs of last week, Lula had not had any direct conversations with candidates for the top Petrobras job, according to people familiar with the matter, although a short list has taken shape. Lula's advisers also say Petrobras should steer more of its profits into investments rather than its generous recent dividends.

LISBON, Nov 19 (Reuters) - Brazilian President-elect Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva said on Saturday that fiscal responsibility was crucial but that spending to improve the country's economy and welfare was equally important. "We cannot spend more than we earn ... but we also know we can spend to do something profitable, to make the country grow, to improve (it)." Leftist Lula defeated right-wing incumbent Jair Bolsonaro in a tight presidential runoff in October. Since last week, the president-elect has rattled financial markets with speeches in which he underscores the priority of social spending over fiscal responsibility. Lula said that although his party defeated Bolsonaro in last month's presidential race, far-right ideology was still very much alive in Brazil.

☆ F1: Max Verstappen says abuse of family is 'unacceptable' following São Paulo Grand Prix
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-18 | by ( Amy Woodyatt | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

CNN —Max Verstappen and Red Bull have hit out at online threats and abuse leveled at the world champion and his family after he ignored team orders at last weekend’s São Paulo Grand Prix. Verstappen refused his team’s instruction to allow teammate Sergio Perez through on the final lap of the race in Brazil. Perez said he previously allowed the Dutchman to overtake on his understanding that his position in the race would be returned. Jared C. Tilton/Getty ImagesDouble F1 world champion Verstappen addressed the controversy Thursday, saying: “After that race of course I looked very bad in the media. “Following the race Max spoke openly and honestly, allowing for both drivers to resolve any outstanding issues or concerns.

Last decade 2100 scenarios LOW EMISSIONS By 2100, Basra would see almost six months of dangerous heat under the most likely scenario. MEDIUM EMISSIONS HIGH EMISSIONS Jan. July Jan. July Dec. Dec. Heat Index 80°F Caution 90°F Extreme Caution 103°F Danger 125°F Extreme Danger Basra Kuwait City Last decade 2100 scenarios Lower emissions Medium emissions Higher emissions Jan. July Jan. July Dec. Dec. Heat Index 80°F Caution 90°F Extreme Caution 103°F Danger 125°F Extreme Danger Basra Last decade 2100 emissions scenario LOW Medium HIGH Jan. July Dec. Kuwait City Last decade 2100 emissions scenario LOW Medium HIGH Jan. July Dec. Heat Index 80°F Caution 90°F Extreme Caution 103°F Danger 125°F Extreme Danger Basra Last decade 2100 emission scenarios Low Medium High Jan. July Dec. Kuwait City Last decade 2100 emission scenarios Low Medium High Jan. July Dec. Heat Index 80°F Caution 90°F Extreme Caution 103°F Danger 125°F Extreme Danger Kuwait City Basra Today, Basra experiences about 60 dangerously hot days per year. MEDIUM EMISSIONS HIGH EMISSIONS Jan. July Jan. July Dec. Dec. Heat Index 27°C Caution 32°C Extreme Caution 39°C Danger 52°C Extreme Danger Basra Kuwait City Last decade 2100 scenarios Lower emissions Medium emissions Higher emissions Jan. July Jan. July Dec. Dec. Heat Index 27°C Caution 32°C Extreme Caution 39°C Danger 52°C Extreme Danger Basra Last decade 2100 emissions scenario LOW Medium HIGH Jan. July Dec. Kuwait City Last decade 2100 emissions scenario LOW Medium HIGH Jan. July Dec. Heat Index 27°C Caution 32°C Extreme Caution 39°C Danger 52°C Extreme Danger Basra Last decade 2100 emissions scenario Low Medium High Jan. July Dec. Kuwait City Last decade 2100 emissions scenario Low Medium High Jan. July Dec. Heat Index 27°C Caution 32°C Extreme Caution 39°C Danger 52°C Extreme Danger Kuwait City Basra Today, Basra experiences about 60 dangerously hot days per year. Last decade 2100 scenarios LOW EMISSIONS By 2100, Basra would see almost six months of dangerous heat under the most likely scenario. MEDIUM EMISSIONS HIGH EMISSIONS Jan. July Jan. July Dec. Dec.

They won a narrow House majority, having won the 218 seats needed, with eight still uncalled. McConnell and Scott both addressed the gathering, which included newly elected Trump-backed Senate Republicans, including J.D. [1/5] U.S. Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell walks to his office at the U.S. Capitol building in Washington, U.S., November 15, 2022. In the House, conservative Republicans continued to bash party leader Kevin McCarthy, a day after he overcame a challenger for the chamber's top job of House speaker. While Senate Republicans met in the morning to vote for party leaders, House Republicans met later in the day to consider chamber rules for the next Congress.

☆ 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.

☆ Meta's WhatsApp makes Brazil a key test market for business messaging
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-17 | by ( Katie Paul | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Nov 17 (Reuters) - Meta Platforms (META.O) said on Thursday its WhatsApp messaging service will introduce a commercial directory and test a payments tool in Brazil, as it bets on business messaging as a potential fresh source of revenue. The directory will allow users to find companies with business messaging accounts on WhatsApp, enabling easier access to customer service chats, Meta said in a blog post. loadingThe directory service will be introduced in Indonesia, Mexico and the United Kingdom as well via WhatsApp's API, which mainly serves large businesses. Partnering with local companies, Whatsapp will also test a payments tool that would make in-app transactions possible with credit or debit cards. Boosting business messaging has assumed greater urgency this year as Meta's core advertising business has stalled.

SAO PAULO, Nov 17 (Reuters) - Brazilian markets slumped on Thursday after the incoming administration of President-elect Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva proposed exempting some 175 billion reais ($32 billion) from the spending cap on next year's budget to pay for welfare programs. Lula's transition team late on Wednesday proposed to lawmakers guidelines for a constitutional amendment that would set a spending cap waiver to secure welfare programs, though without establishing how long the waiver would last. "The stock market will fall, the dollar will rise (against the real). The dollar doesn't rise and the stock market doesn't fall because of serious people, but because of those speculating every single day," he said. Helder Wakabayashi, an analyst at Toro Investimentos, said that markets would remain pressured at least until the incoming government proposes a deadline for the spending cap waiver.

☆ China's BYD expands electric vehicle operation in Brazil
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-17 | by ( Alberto Alerigi | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

[1/3] Executive Vice President of BYD and the President of BYD Americas, Stella Li poses for a picture during an interview with Reuters in Sao Paulo, Brazil November 16, 2022. REUTERS/Alberto Alerigi Jr.SAO PAULO, Nov 17 (Reuters) - Chinese automaker BYD Co Ltd (002594.SZ) will start selling two new electric vehicle models in Brazil this month, betting on favorable political and environmental developments in Latin America's largest vehicle market, the company said. They will be imported until new factories to make them in the northeastern state of Bahia start operations. BYD expects that 10% of all vehicle sales in Brazil will be electric and hybrid models by 2025, compared to the current 2.4%, and the EV market share could jump to 30% by 2030. Li pointed to the tax burden as one of the main factors behind the high prices of electric and hybrid vehicles in Brazil compared to other markets.

Despite Republican hopes for a "red wave" of support in the Nov. 8 elections, they failed to reverse Democrats' razor-thin Senate majority. They appear to be on course to win a narrow House majority, having won 217 of the 218 seats they would need, with 10 still uncalled. McConnell and Scott both addressed the gathering, which included newly elected Trump-backed Senate Republicans, including J.D. [1/5] U.S. Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell walks to his office at the U.S. Capitol building in Washington, U.S., November 15, 2022. While Senate Republicans met in the morning to vote for party leaders, House Republicans were due later in the day to consider chamber rules for the next Congress, assuming they succeed in capturing the House.

[1/5] U.S. Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell walks to his office at the U.S. Capitol building in Washington, U.S., November 15, 2022. Trump, who launched his own 2024 White House candidacy on Tuesday, falsely claims he lost because of fraud. "The Democrats outmaneuver us in every election," Braun said as Republicans met to choose their leaders for the next two years. In the House, conservative Republicans continued to bash party leader Kevin McCarthy, a day after he overcame a challenger for the chamber's top job of House speaker. While Senate Republicans met in the morning to vote for party leaders, House Republicans were due later in the day to consider chamber rules for the next Congress, assuming they succeed in capturing the House.

☆ 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.

Brazil's 1992 Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro set the stage for all major international environmental agreements since, with the signing of U.N. Framework Convention on Climate Change, which is aimed at preventing extreme climate change and was the foundation of the COP meetings. He said Lula would turn around Brazil's environmental policies "180 degrees" from those of Bolsonaro. Lula won office last month over Bolsonaro, who appointed climate skeptics as ministers and saw deforestation in Brazil's Amazon rainforest spike to a 15-year high. On Thursday, Lula will meet with civil society and indigenous groups, as well as United Nations Secretary General Antonio Guterres.

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