Key Points —Russia set a quota of 20 million tonnes of fertilizer exports from June through November, extending restrictions in place since 2021. —Brazil is Russia’s single largest fertilizer customer, sourcing 32.2% of its total fertilizer imports from Moscow — roughly 14.7 million tonnes in 2025. —The caps compound a triple supply shock: Hormuz has […]

The post Russia Caps Fertilizer Exports, Threatening Brazil’s Harvest appeared first on The Rio Times.

Key Points —Morgan Stanley Investment Management is avoiding local-currency government bonds from Brazil and Colombia due to fiscal deficits and election uncertainty. —Fund manager Patrick Campbell described the policy direction under both left-wing governments as mediocre, despite high bond yields. —Brazil faces an 8.5% fiscal deficit ahead of October presidential elections, while Colombia holds its […]

The post Morgan Stanley Fund Shuns Brazil and Colombia Local Debt appeared first on The Rio Times.

Key Points — Brazilian power producer Engie Brasil Energia (B3: EGIE3) is working with Banco Itaú BBA and Banco Santander Brasil on a follow-on equity offering of up to R$10 billion (approximately US$2 billion). The Engie Brasil share offer is expected by mid-year, with additional banks possibly joining the syndicate. The transaction would be one […]

The post Engie Brasil Hires Itaú, Santander for $2B Equity Offering appeared first on The Rio Times.

Key Points — The Brazil inflation IPCA-15 indicator accelerated to 0.89 percent in April 2026 from 0.44 percent in March, the IBGE statistics agency reported Tuesday April 28 — but came in below the 0.99 percent median Bloomberg forecast. The 12-month accumulated rate climbed to 4.37 percent, up from 3.9 percent in March, but still […]

The post Brazil Inflation Comes In Below Forecast Ahead of Copom appeared first on The Rio Times.

Key Points — Brazil’s National Petroleum, Natural Gas and Biofuels Agency (ANP) proposed Monday April 27 to transfer the operational execution of its Permanent Offer oil and gas exploration auctions to the B3 exchange starting in 2027. The Brazil oil gas auctions reform was announced at the workshop “Novo Modelo de Licitação de E&P da […]

The post Brazil’s Oil Auctions Get a New Home: The B3 Exchange appeared first on The Rio Times.

Key Points — Tax-authority documents handed to the Senate’s Crime Organized commission show Brazil’s failed Banco Master made roughly R$65 million in declared payments to law firms and consultancies tied to former president Michel Temer (R$10 million), União Brasil party chief Antônio Rueda (R$6.4 million), former Bahia capital mayor ACM Neto (R$5.4 million), Justice Minister […]

The post Brazil’s Biggest Banking Scandal of 2026 Now Reaches a Former President, Three Ex-Ministers and a Sitting Party Chief appeared first on The Rio Times.

Key Points —Senator Flávio Bolsonaro — the right-wing frontrunner for Brazil’s October 2026 presidential election — pledged on April 22 at the Norte Show agribusiness fair in Sinop, Mato Grosso to end the Amazon soy moratorium, the 20-year-old voluntary accord that bars traders from buying soybeans from land deforested after 2008. —The timing is strategic: […]

The post Flávio Bolsonaro Promises Farmers He Will End the 20-Year Amazon Soy Deforestation Agreement appeared first on The Rio Times.

Key Points —A UK holding called Titan Capital Holdings Ltd was registered at Companies House on April 2, 2026 (number 17135437), roughly four weeks after Brazil’s Central Bank froze the assets of a near-identical Cayman Islands vehicle — Titan Capital Holding — tied to jailed Banco Master founder Daniel Vorcaro. —The new company’s sole director, […]

The post A Second Titan Holding Surfaces in London as Brazil’s Master Bank Probe Widens appeared first on The Rio Times.

Key Points —Brazilian exports to the 15-country Middle East region fell 26% in March to US$882 million, down from US$1.2 billion a year earlier, as the US–Israel–Iran war disrupted Gulf shipping routes. —Agribusiness took the main hit, with pork exports down 59%, soy down 25% and chicken — Brazil’s top item sold to the region […]

The post Brazil Middle East Exports Fall 26% to $882 Million as Iran War Hits Agribusiness appeared first on The Rio Times.

Key Points — Bank of America strategists David Beker and Natacha Perez published a Brazil strategy note on April 14 titled “Brazil: the new gold?” after client meetings in New York ahead of the IMF Spring Meetings. The note argues Brazilian equities and the real continue to outperform global peers, driven primarily by foreign inflows, […]

The post “Brazil: The New Gold?” BofA Explains Why Foreign Money Keeps Piling In appeared first on The Rio Times.

Key Points — The US State Department’s narcotics report lists Brazil among major sources of precursor or essential chemicals used to make illicit drugs, alongside China, Argentina, Chile, India, Mexico and others. — The report identifies the PCC as the main transnational threat, present in 22 of Brazil’s 27 states and 16 countries, and names […]

The post Washington Puts Brazil on Drug Precursor Source List appeared first on The Rio Times.

Key Points — Brazil’s agro-industrial output fell 1.9% in February year-over-year according to the FGV Agro PIMAgro index — critically, this data captures the period before the Iran war began on February 28, meaning the full impact of Hormuz disruptions is not yet reflected — The non-food agro-industrial segment collapsed 5.5%, driven by an 11.5% […]

The post Brazil’s Agro-Industry Was Already Shrinking Before the Iran War Made Everything Worse appeared first on The Rio Times.