Brazilian Business Roundup - January 19
The Brazilian Report
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Welcome to your go-to source for the latest in Business and Tech across Brazil and Latin America! Each week, we bring you a curated roundup of the most intriguing stories, ensuring you stay informed and ahead of the curve.?
In just 5 minutes, you'll get a concise overview of the region's key developments, from groundbreaking tech innovations to pivotal business moves. Our mission is to provide you with valuable insights to drive smarter decisions and spark new ideas. Ready to dive into the highlights? Let's get started!
??Here’s our Top Stories:
??A startup wants to turn farming sustainability into tokens
Agrotoken , a startup founded in 2021, is leveraging blockchain technology to track and consolidate sustainability certifications across agricultural supply chains, converting them into digital tokens. Read more
??What’s in store for Brazil's labor market this year
Companies are willing to hire in 2025, but sourcing a sufficiently skilled workforce is still a challenge for several fields.? Read more
??Brazil's middle class reclaims majority status amid income gain
Brazil regained its middle-class majority in 2024. A study by consultancy firm Tendências revealed that 50.1% of Brazilian households now earn a monthly income of more than BRL 3,400 (about USD 565).? Read more
??Worth keeping an eye on!
??♂?Cash transfers do not make for lazy workers. Read more
??How Brazil plans to avoid another dengue debacle. Read more
? Axing the Amazon with a pen stroke. Read more
? Brazil's aviation market about to become even more concentrated. Read more
??#ChartsOfTheWeek: Brazilian banks’ annus horribilis
Brazil's traditional banking giants faced a challenging year in 2024. The four largest publicly traded banks — Itaú, Banco do Brasil, Bradesco and Santander Brasil — collectively lost BRL 122 billion (USD 19.97 billion) in market value. That is more than Bradesco’s market cap at the turn of the year (BRL 118.1 billion).
This decline reflected investor pessimism, particularly in the second half of 2024. Brazil's benchmark interest rate surged to 12.25%; some market analysts believe that it could cross the 15% threshold by the end of this year. These higher borrowing costs strained consumers and businesses alike, raising concerns over repayment capacity.
By the numbers. Shares of Brazilian banks traded in the United States via American Depositary Receipts plummeted last year, with declines ranging from 28.6% for Itaú Unibanco to a staggering 45% for Bradesco. (Caixa, one of Brazil’s major banking players, is state-owned.) In stark contrast, digital banking giant Nubank saw its New York-listed shares rise by 24%, bucking the downward trend.
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That wraps up this week’s edition. See you next Sunday evening! Subscribe to the Brazilian Business News Roundup, your essential weekly recap to never miss a beat in Brazil’s business environment.
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Founded in 2017, The Brazilian Report is an English-language media outlet uniquely positioned to provide an insider’s view of current affairs in Brazil and Latin America, with a mission to make Latin Americans’ voices heard and become the reference for Latin American news worldwide. An award-winning newsroom, The Brazilian Report has just received recognition for its portfolio of newsletters at this year’s Wan Ifra Awards.
Within 6 years of existence, The Brazilian Report has gained international recognition. It has become the go-to source for several embassies, think tanks, and international news outlets, including Time Magazine, CNBC, BBC Worldwide, Vox, Axios, Radio France, CGTN, among others.