Key Facts —The framework: Brazilian Central Bank President Gabriel Galípolo told the 4th BCB Annual Conference on May 13 that the current monetary-policy challenge is separating genuine supply shocks (from the Middle East war and climate effects) from second-order effects, with the latter requiring extra vigilance given Brazil’s unanchored inflation expectations and tight labor market. […]

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Key Facts —The operation: The Brazilian Federal Police launched Operation Off-Balance on May 13, executing six search and seizure warrants in Cajamar, Boituva, and São Paulo to investigate R$107 million (US$27 million) in suspicious investments by the Cajamar municipal pension fund, including R$87 million (US$22 million) in liquidated Banco Master notes. —The targets: Three former […]

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Key Facts —The headline: Genial/Quaest’s May 13 poll shows President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva at 42% to Senator Flávio Bolsonaro’s 41% in a potential second-round vote, a numerical edge inside the 2-point margin of error and a reversal from the April poll, when Flávio led 42% to 40%. —The first round: Lula leads 39% […]

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Key Facts —Effective date: the European Commission removed Brazil from its list of countries authorized to export animal products to the EU on May 12, 2026, with the ban taking effect September 3. —Scope: the veto covers cattle, horses, poultry, eggs, aquaculture, honey, casings and other animal-origin products from Brazil — both live animals and […]

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Brazil entered May 2026 with 8.9 million company-tax registrations in default per Serasa Experian and roughly 80 million individuals delinquent on debts older than 90 days, the highest readings in the agency’s series. Total household and corporate debt in default reaches 557 billion Brazilian reais (about 110 billion U.S. dollars at the recent rate of […]

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Key Points — Brazil tax revenue hit R$229.249 billion in March 2026, Receita Federal reported Tuesday April 28 — the highest March result since the historical series began in 1995. Real terms growth (IPCA-adjusted): 4.99 percent year-on-year. Q1 2026 cumulative total: R$777.12 billion nominal, R$784.24 billion in real terms (+4.6% YoY) — also the strongest […]

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Key Points — The April BTG Pactual/Nexus poll released Monday morning April 27 — the first major election poll after the Workers’ Party closed its 8th National Congress on Sunday — shows President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva recovering a more comfortable first-round lead while simultaneously losing the second-round comfort margin against Goiás Governor Ronaldo […]

The post Lula Recovers in 1st Round, But the BTG Nexus April Poll Shows the Right Has Found Three Plausible Runoff Candidates appeared first on The Rio Times.

Key Points —Brazil’s antitrust authority CADE voted unanimously on April 23 to escalate its six-year-old investigation into Google’s use of journalistic content from an administrative inquiry to a full administrative process. —The new proceeding explicitly includes Google’s generative AI features in search results — the first time a Latin American antitrust regulator has placed AI-generated […]

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Key Points —Former Minas Gerais Governor Romeu Zema (Novo) said on April 22 he has not been formally invited to serve as vice-president on Senator Flávio Bolsonaro’s (PL) ticket — and that even if invited, he intends to carry his own presidential pre-candidacy through to the end. —Zema said Brazil’s right-wing field will contain three […]

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Key Points —The new Minha Casa Minha Vida rules went into operation on April 22, with Caixa Econômica Federal and Banco do Brasil now financing properties of up to R$600,000 (about US$120,000) for families earning up to R$13,000 per month. —The redesign elevates the program from a low-income housing instrument into a comprehensive middle-class subsidy, […]

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Key Points —The Wall Street Journal published a Monday feature comparing the São Paulo-based PCC faction to the Italian mafia, crediting the group with the operational efficiency of a multinational corporation operating across nearly 30 countries. —The story lands as the Trump administration pushes Brasília to designate the PCC and the Rio de Janeiro-based Comando […]

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Key Points — Brazil’s Supreme Federal Tribunal (STF) opened a new extraordinary virtual judgment on former President Jair Bolsonaro’s detention this week. The session runs until 23:59 on Friday and will be decided by the Primeira Turma — Alexandre de Moraes (rapporteur), Flávio Dino (panel president), Cristiano Zanin, and Cármen Lúcia — the same four-minister […]

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