Reuters - Swiss Petrobras investigation widens to include Odebrecht GENEVA, JULY 22 The Swiss Attorney General's office has widened a corruption investigation into Brazilian oil firm Petrobras to include construction company Odebrecht SA and other associated entities, it said on Wednesday, confirming a report in the Neue Zuercher Zeitung newspaper. "Subsidiaries of Odebrecht are suspected... Continue Reading →
Halliburton Facing Anti Trust Hurdles Over Baker Hughes
Halliburton Co.’s takeover of Baker Hughes Inc. is facing resistance from U.S. enforcement officials who are concerned the tie-up could hurt competition, according to a person familiar with the matter. Justice Department lawyers reviewing the proposed $34.6 billiontransaction are worried that the oilfield services industry would become too concentrated after a combination of its No.... Continue Reading →
Brazil Rating-Cut Angst on Budget Concern
Traders now have one more reason to expect a downgrade of Brazil’s credit rating. A press report saying President Dilma Rousseff will cut the primary budget surplus goal, which excludes interest payments, spurred the worst slide in the Americas for the Ibovespa. An earlier-than-estimated revision of the target is seen hurting the government’s credibility and... Continue Reading →
Reuters Exclusive: Brazil to slash fiscal surplus goal as downturn takes a toll
The Brazilian government will slash its key fiscal surplus goal for the year as tax revenues sink, but plans to unveil fresh spending cuts to show its commitment to austerity, two officials familiar with the decision told Reuters early on Wednesday. The reduction of the targeted primary surplus of 66.3 billion reais ($20.89 billion) or... Continue Reading →
Petrobras – Clarification on News: Contract with Braskem
Petrobras - Clarification on News: Contract with Braskem 07/21/2015 Rio de Janeiro, July 21st, 2015 – Petróleo Brasileiro S.A. – Petrobras hereby responds to Official Letter 278/2015/CVM/SEP/GEA-1, as transcribed below: OFFICIAL LETTER 278/2015/CVM/SEP/GEA-1 We refer to the article published on July 18, 2015 on the G1 website, entitled Petrobras sai no prejuízo em contrato com... Continue Reading →
Petrobras – Clarification on News: Petrobras Distribuidora offering
Petrobras - Clarification on News: Petrobras Distribuidora offering 07/21/2015 Rio de Janeiro, July 21st, 2015 – Petróleo Brasileiro S.A. – Petrobras´ response to Official Letter BM&FBovespa n.º 2379/2015-SAE, as transcribed below: OFÍCIO n.º 2379/2015-SAE “According to the news’ content broadcasted by Valor Econômico, on 07/21/2015, comprises information that the company analyzes (to make) the IPO... Continue Reading →
Brazil June Current Account Deficit Wider Than Forecast
Brazil’s June current account deficit was wider than economists forecast, as imports fall amid an economic slowdown. The deficit in the current account, the broadest measure of trade in goods and services, narrowed in June to $2.5 billion from a revised $3.3 billion a month earlier, the central bank said in a report distributed today... Continue Reading →
Oil Debt Opportunism Rebuked by Aker ASA
Aker ASA, Norway’s biggest high-yield issuer, criticized bondholders it said risked eroding trust in the market by using lower oil prices as an excuse to demand excessively lucrative terms. Issuer efforts to relax loan terms as lower oil prices hurt cash flows are being met by unreasonable bondholder demands, according to Chief Executive Officer Oeyvind... Continue Reading →
The Political Novela in Brazil Adds New Episode
Vice President Michel Temer has become the Brazilian government’s Indispensable Man, its main buffer against the swirling turmoil that threatens to overwhelm President Dilma Rousseff and undermine her economic recovery program. Temer played that role most recently late last week as he kept the ruling coalition together by refusing to join the leader of Congress’s... Continue Reading →
Exxon’s Guyana Oil Find
An Exxon Mobil Corp. discovery off the coast of Guyana may hold oil and natural gas worth 12 times the South American nation’s entire economic output. The Liza-1 well, which probably holds the equivalent of more than 700 million barrels of oil, may begin pumping crude in as few as five years, Raphael Trotman, Guyana’s... Continue Reading →
