Brazil’s central bank raised the country’s base Selic interest rate a quarter-percentage point Wednesday to 11.25% in a move to rein in accelerating inflation. The move came as a surprise to most observers in markets, who by and large were expecting the bank to hold the rate steady at 11%. In a statement, the central…
Agribusiness Cutrale and the Safra investment bank have made a successful bid to buy North Carolina-based banana producer Chiquita in a deal valued at $1.3 billion, the companies said. Under an agreement approved by the Chiquita board of directors, Cutrale-Safra will acquire all outstanding common shares of Chiquita for $14.50 per share. The companies said…
The government-allied Democratic Movement Party, or PMDB, widened its control of state governments in the latest election, taking 7 of 27 state posts. The party previously held 5 state governments. The governing Workers’s Party, or PT, meanwhile, held on to 5 state governor’s seats, while states controlled by the opposition Social Democratic Party, or PSDB,…
Incumbent President Dilma Rousseff of the Workers’ Party defeated Social Democratic Party challenger Aécio Neves in a runoff vote Sunday to gain re-election for a second 4-year term. With more than 99% of ballots counted, Ms. Rousseff had 51.5% of the vote versus 48.5% for Mr. Neves. The vote brought to an end three months…
The latest polls ahead of a runoff presidential vote Sunday showed a tight race, with incumbent Dilma Rousseff still holding a slight lead over challenger Aécio Neves. Major polling institutes Datafolha and Ibope continued to show an advantage for Ms. Rousseff, of the Workers’s Party, but support for Mr. Neves, of the opposition Social Democratic…
Credit ratings agency Moody’s Tuesday cut its global and local ratings for state-owned oil company Petrobras, citing elevated leveraging by the company. Moody’s lowered its rating for the company to Baa2 from Baa1 and maintained a negative outlook. The agency said Petrobras has been negatively affected by declining oil prices, heavy investment commitments and a…
Brazil’s IPCA consumer price index accelerated in mid-October as food and other personal costs rose early in the month, the IBGE statistics institute reported. The IBGE said its IPCA-15 inflation measurement accelerated 0.48% in the period, from a 0.39% advance seen through mid September. With the latest reading, 12-month inflation has reached 6.62%, topping the…
Funds were diverted from Brazil’s state-run oil company Petrobras for political campaigns, and the government will do all possible to see them repaid, President Dilma Rousseff said Sunday. Speaking at a press conference, Ms. Rousseff for the first time admitted that a scheme recently revealed by former Petrobras Director Paulo Roberto da Costa in testimony…
Former chief-of-staff for Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff, Gleisi Hoffman, received R$1 million for a senate campaign from state-run oil company Petrobras, the Estado de São Paulo newspaper reported. The revelation was reportedly made by former Petrobras Director Paulo Roberto da Costa in testimony to the police on a series of funds diverted from the company.…
Brazil’s economic activity advanced slightly in August after posting a strong gain the previous month, but remained less than 1% over 12 months, the central bank said. The bank reported the IBC-BR activity index rose 0.27% during the month after a 1.5% increase seen in July. With the latest result, the index has risen 0.93%…
