http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/3ae4c710-f23a-11e4-892a-00144feab7de.html#ixzz3ZAx24fRc May 4, 2015 10:49 am Prosecutors in Brazil investigate Lula for alleged influence peddling Samantha Pearson in São Paulo/FT ©AFP Former Brazilian president Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva Brazil’s federal prosecutors have opened a preliminary investigation into the country’s wildly popular former leader Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva for illicit influence peddling in Cuba,... Continue Reading →

Sat May 2, 2015 12:52pm EDT Brazil questions former president Lula's relationship with builder * Allegations emerged in magazine report * Construction projects funded in countries Lula visited * Building company Odebrecht denies wrongdoing BRASILIA, May 2 (Reuters) - Federal prosecutors in Brazil have opened a preliminary investigation into whether former president Luiz Inácio Lula... Continue Reading →

May 1, 2015 5:21 pm Oil’s strong rise in April boosts hopes price rout is over FT Reporters ©Getty Oil prices posted the strongest monthly gain since 2009 in April as US production showed signs of slowing, leading many traders to bet the worst of the oil rout is over. The international benchmark Ice June Brent... Continue Reading →

http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/d3b1af6c-f014-11e4-aee0-00144feab7de.html#ixzz3YvDREAoY May 1, 2015 9:17 pm Saudi restructures oil sector, concentrating prince’s power Simeon Kerr in Dubai and Anjli Raval and David Sheppard in London/FT ©AFP Prince Mohamed bin Salman al-Saud Saudi Arabia, the world’s largest oil exporter, has restructured its hydrocarbon sector by splitting the state oil company from the oil ministry in a... Continue Reading →

Chevron’s Results Beat Expectations Oil giant’s earnings, revenue decline on lower oil prices Employees work on a storage tank inside Chevron’s Richmond, Calif., refinery. PHOTO: DAVID PAUL MORRIS/BLOOMBERG NEWS By CHELSEY DULANEY/WSJ Updated May 1, 2015 9:03 a.m. ET Chevron Corp. said its first-quarter earnings dropped 43%, but strength in its refining segment and currency fluctuations helped offset tumbling... Continue Reading →

Brazil’s Turnaround Elusive as Tightening to Come Belies Rally By Andre Soliani Costa Raymond Colitt / Bloomberg 12:00 AM BRT May 1, 2015 Brazil's President Dilma Rousseff’s approval rating slumped 19 percentage points since December to 23 percent, the lowest level of any Brazilian president in 15 years, according to a poll conducted by Datafolha... Continue Reading →

http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/c53a8276-ef45-11e4-a6d2-00144feab7de.html#ixzz3YpLXzBGn April 30, 2015 6:52 pm Energy earnings run dry in Americas Ed Crooks, Christopher Adams and David Crouch/FT ©Bloomberg The slump in oil and natural gas prices since last summer has driven the American production operations of the world’s largest oil companies into losses. ExxonMobil and ConocoPhillips of the US on Thursday reported that... Continue Reading →

Brazil's economy A tight squeeze Faced with weak growth and soaring inflation, the central bank hikes interest rates Apr 30th 2015 | SÃO PAULO| The Economist DO NOT envy Brazil’s monetary policymakers. The economy is faltering. With business confidence plumbing record depths, unemployment up and real wages down—by 3% year-on-year in March, the most in more than... Continue Reading →

Oil Prices Post Biggest Monthly Gain Since 2009 Crude oil hits new high for the year Oilfield equipment in North Dakota can be seen in this January file photo. PHOTO: ASSOCIATED PRESS By NICOLE FRIEDMAN/WSJ Updated April 30, 2015 3:35 p.m. ET Oil prices rose to a new 2015 high Thursday, capping their best-performing month in years,... Continue Reading →