Brazil's besieged President Dilma Rousseff lost a major battle on Wednesday when the federal audit court rejected her government's accounts from last year, paving the way for her opponents to try to impeach her. In a unanimous vote, the Federal Accounts Court, known as the TCU, ruled that Rousseff's government manipulated its accounts in 2014... Continue Reading →
Brazil real halts 3-day winning streak on political jitters
Brazil real halts 3-day winning streak on political jitters Reuters RIO DE JANEIRO, Oct 7 The Brazilian real fell nearly 1 percent on Thursday after three days of gains as concerns that President Dilma Rousseff might fail to pass crucial austerity measures outweighed bets that the U.S. Federal Reserve will refrain from raising rates this... Continue Reading →
Brazil’s Rousseff struggles to squash impeachment threat
Brazil's Supreme Court dealt President Dilma Rousseff a blow on Wednesday in her fight to avert impeachment proceedings by refusing to delay a ruling by auditors on alleged doctoring of government accounts. Later on Wednesday, Brazil's Federal Accounts Court, known as the TCU, is expected to reject her government's accounts because budget results were manipulated... Continue Reading →
Petrobras and Oil Majors Sit Out Worst Brazil Round Since 2003
Petroleo Brasileiro SA sat out an oil licensing round in Brazil for the first time ever as the beleaguered state-run oil giant struggles to reduce the industry’s biggest debt load. The country’s National Petroleum Agency sold only 37 of the 266 onshore and offshore blocks it offered in the worst turnout in more than a... Continue Reading →
Brazil oil and gas auction sells 37 of 266 oil blocks/total fiasco
The 13th Brazil Oil and Gas Auction is considered the worst fiasco. Only 14% of the blocks were negotiated bringing a total of R$121 million to the govt coffers or only 12% of the minimum estimate of R$977 million. The round was marked by the absence of Petrobras and all the oil majors. This is... Continue Reading →
Eletrobras’ corruption probe zeroes in on Brazilian dams
A commission hired by Brazil's state-run energy utility Eletrobras to probe possible violations of U.S. and Brazilian anti-corruption laws involving the company is studying three Amazonian dam projects and a nuclear power plant, two sources familiar with the investigation said. They said the commission is investigating possible bribery in two $5 billion dam projects on... Continue Reading →
YPF Won’t Overpay for Petrobras Argentina Assets, CFO Says
YPF SA, Argentina’s largest company, knows the fair value ofPetroleo Brasileiro SA’s local assets and will only proceed with an acquisition if the price meets its criteria, Chief Financial OfficerDaniel Gonzalez said. The executive declined to confirm or deny an article published Wednesday in La Nacion newspaper that said YPF abandoned a bid after Petrobras Argentina... Continue Reading →
Brazil Real – Dead cat bounce or overshooting?
Dead Cat Bounce or Overshooting? Brazil’s real headed for its longest winning streak since May as U.S. oil approached $50 a barrel for the first time since July, spurring gains in emerging markets and the currencies of commodity-producing nations. The real gained 1 percent to 3.8152 per dollar at 9:43 a.m. in Sao Paulo, extending... Continue Reading →
Best Forecasters of World’s Worst Currency See More Brazil Pain
Brazil’s real is the worst-performing major currency this year. Ask the top-ranked forecasters and they’ll say it’s set for more losses. The three most accurate currency analysts see the real trading at an average of 4.1 per dollar by year-end, data compiled by Bloomberg show. To get there, the real would have to slide another... Continue Reading →
Barclays: Petrodollars Were Basically Another Quantitative Easing
Behold a once mighty sovereign wealth fund laid low(er) by plunging oil prices. Bloomberg reports on Wednesday that Norway is predicting it will have to withdraw cash from its $820bn SWF for the first time ever as it deals with lower oil prices and budget holes. That move comes on top of a series of hits... Continue Reading →
Brazil Energy Insight 