The oil price Dead cat rally The price of oil has bounced. But a recovery is some way off Mar 10th 2015 | Business and finance/The Economist STRONG demand and tight supply have stoked a rise in the oil price. Last week, it reached more than $60 for Brent (the benchmark price for North Sea oil) and... Continue Reading →

Former Petrobras Executive Says He Took Bribes Pedro Barusco, a former high-level manager, said he believes the governing party took twice as much as he did Former Petrobras executive Pedro Barusco listens to a question during his testimony before Congress in Brasilia, Brazil, on Tuesday. He told congressmen that he took bribes while working at... Continue Reading →

State oil firm's scandal scrambles Brazil's offshore dreams By ADRIANA GOMEZ LICON Associated Press AP Photo/Felipe Dana RIO DE JANEIRO (AP) -- Oil was to have been Brazil's "passport to the future," but the grand dreams tied to state company Petrobras have been brought to a screeching halt not only by falling crude prices, but... Continue Reading →

http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/92136f40-c6fd-11e4-8e1f-00144feab7de.html#ixzz3TzJMabgC March 10, 2015 9:36 am Optimists see end for Brazil currency slide Joe Leahy in São Paulo When Brazil’s central bank met in late January to consider increasing interest rates, it predicted the currency, the real, would hover at R$2.65 to the dollar for the next two years. On Monday, the currency closed at about... Continue Reading →

Brazilian politics Gone to pot A sprawling corruption case poses a threat to badly needed economic reforms Mar 9th 2015 | SÃO PAULO The Economist ON MARCH 8th Dilma Rousseff, Brazil’s president, used a televised women’s day address to justify the need for belt-tightening. This is required to close a budget deficit of 6.75%, stave off a... Continue Reading →

http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/b7802362-c67c-11e4-aee8-00144feab7de.html#ixzz3TujAiybL March 9, 2015 6:07 pm Brazilian real falls to 11-year low over risk to austerity plan ©AFP By Joe Leahy and Samantha Pearson in São Paulo Brazil’s real plunged to a near 11-year low on opening in São Paulo, amid concerns that rising political risk could threaten President Dilma Rousseff’s fiscal austerity plan. The South American... Continue Reading →