Brazilian Business Roundup - May 05

If you have a keen interest in Brazil’s business landscape, you’ve come to the right place! We’re here to curate the most relevant business developments in Brazil and Latin America just for you. In 5 minutes, we’ll give you an overview of Brazil and Latin America's most compelling business issues. Our goal is to provide you with insights that will help you make better business decisions. So let’s dive right in!

????Show me the money! The relationship between farmers and the Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva administration is by no means a warm one. But it has become less confrontational since the government made a record amount of money available through the 2023-2024 Harvest Plan. Read the details

?????Brazil’s plan to protect green investors. President Lula issued a decree laying the foundations of the program to protect green investors from forex risks, which was first announced in February, during a G20 meeting of finance ministers in S?o Paulo. Read the details

????Moody’s changes Brazil’s outlook to positive. Moody’s on Wednesday reaffirmed Brazil’s long-term issuer and senior unsecured bond ratings at Ba2, two notches below investment grade. Meanwhile, the rating agency improved Brazil’s outlook from stable to positive. Read more

??Brazil has a new unicorn. QI Tech raised a new funding round led by General Atlantic last week, surpassing the USD 1 billion valuation. It was on Distrito 's list of unicorn candidates for this year. Read the details

??????Cheap Chinese steel spreads dumping fears. China’s economic slowdown has led the Asian giant to look for new markets for its over-abundant steel output, and Latin American industries are already feeling the sting of cheaper competition. Read more

????Brazil’s job market remains strong despite unemployment uptick. The country's unemployment rate rose to 7.9 percent in March due to seasonal reasons: more people looking for work at the beginning of the year. At the same time, the formal market recorded its second-best first quarter since 2020. Read more

???????The legacy of Ayrton Senna. One of the greatest motor racers ever to have lived, perhaps the greatest, Ayrton Senna died 30 years ago today. And his legacy still looms large in Brazil. Read more

??Brazil wants to know more about its domestic workers. The ebbs and flows of domestic work in Brazil somewhat reflect the overall state of the country's economy. The government is trying to know more about them in order to propose more effective labor protection regulations. Read more

??? On this week’s podcast …

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The relationship between farmers and the Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva administration is by no means a warm one. The government is trying to change that with shedloads of credit. Gustavo Ribeiro and Cedê Silva explain. You can listen to the full episode here.

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???Brazil could recreate commission on political disappearances. Brazil’s Justice Ministry reiterated its support for a decision to recreate the Special Commission on Political Deaths and Disappearances, which was shut down at the end of the Jair Bolsonaro administration in late 2022. Read the details

???Petrobras shareholders vote to pay extraordinary dividends. Shareholders of Brazil’s oil giant Petrobras approved the general meeting the payment of around BRL 22 billion (USD 4.2 billion) in extraordinary dividends relating to Q4 2023, reversing a previous board decision and ending a long public dispute that seemed to threaten the job of chief executive Jean Paul Prates. Read more

??Brazil’s mid-month inflation index slows down again. Brazil’s IPCA-15 mid-month inflation measurement posted a 0.21 percent increase in April, following the 0.36 percent uptick in March. Read the details

???Deadlocked over Itaipu dam. Speaking before a Senate hearing, Chief of Staff Rui Costa admitted that Brazil and Paraguay have reached a “deadlock” over tariffs for electricity produced by the Itaipu Dam — the massive hydroelectric complex shared by both countries. Read more

??Lula’s communications minister in hot water. Again. In a report to the Federal Police, Brazil’s Federal Comptroller General’s Office (CGU) denounced irregularities with the funding of a project to pave a road in the Northeastern state of Maranh?o. The works were made possible by a budgetary earmark proposed by Juscelino Filho, a lawmaker who currently serves as Brazil’s Communications Minister. Read the details

That wraps up this week’s edition. See you next Sunday evening! Subscribe to Brazilian Business News Roundup, your essential weekly recap to never miss a beat when it comes to understanding 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.

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