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TBR up for Best News Website at Digital Media Americas Awards

The Brazilian Report has been made a finalist for Best News Website in the WAN-IFRA 2024 Digital Media Americas Awards

TBR Newsroom
Mar 18, 2024 17:05

The Brazilian Report is delighted to announce that we have been made finalists in the World Association of News Publishers (WAN-IFRA) 2024 Digital Media Americas Awards, in the prestigious Best News Website category.

The Brazilian Report will be competing for the prize alongside two Argentinian nominees: major newspaper La Nación, and Todo Noticias, from media company Artear. Some 140 media companies put their names forward for this particular category, underlining just how impressive an achievement this nomination is.

Entries for this category are chosen for their “combined excellence in content and UX, as well as value to readers and advertisers.” The winners will be unveiled during this year’s awards ceremony, to be held on April 11 and 12 in Panama City.

The Digital Media Americas Awards bring together the best projects from North, Central, and South America in a single competition to recognize innovation, strategy, and creativity.

This year’s edition will also include new award categories focused on artificial intelligence, including Best Use of AI in the Newsroom, and Best Use of AI in a Revenue Project.

“WAN-IFRA recognizes the efforts of publishers that have developed unique and original initiatives in the field of digital media, with the help of new tools and formats, using the most advanced technology or driving innovation, from new approaches to digital subscriptions to the most impactful digital storytelling or native advertising initiatives, the Digital Media Awards are a reference for the industry regionally and globally,” reads the association’s website.

In last year’s edition, The Brazilian Report won the award for Best Newsletter for a small or local company. The nomination for Best News Website is proof that we are going from strength to strength in our quest to bring news on Brazil and Latin America to the world.

Lula: Brazil faced serious coup risk under Bolsonaro

Cedê Silva
Mar 18, 2024 14:36

President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva said on Monday that there’s “no doubt” anymore that his predecessor, Jair Bolsonaro, attempted a coup after the 2022 election, in a reference to accounts to the Federal Police by members of the former administration unsealed on Friday.

“Today we are sure that this country was at serious risk of suffering a coup due to the 2022 elections,” Lula said during a live televised part of a cabinet meeting, mentioning the accounts. “Whoever had any doubt can now be sure that we almost returned to dark times,” he added, in a reference to Brazil’s military dictatorship (1964-1985), during which Lula became nationally famous as a trade union leader organizing strikes in the state of São Paulo.

The former Army and Air Force commanders told the Federal Police that Mr. Bolsonaro recruited them to overthrow democracy in late 2022, hosting meetings to discuss plans and decrees that would justify a coup. 

The chairman of Mr. Bolsonaro’s Liberal Party, Valdemar Costa Neto, said Mr. Bolsonaro and members of Congress pressured him to challenge the electoral results in the Superior Electoral Court, which his party indeed acted on, without evidence or legal grounds. The case was quickly dismissed, and the party was fined millions of reais.

Lula said today that a coup failed to take place “not only because some people who were in charge of the Armed Forces didn’t want to do it and didn’t accept the [former] president’s idea, but also because the [former] president is a big coward.”

Lula then added, about Mr. Bolsonaro: “He preferred to flee to the United States … in the expectation that the coup would happen while he was out of the country, because they financed people close to the barracks to try to encourage the coup to proceed.”

Mr. Bolsonaro left Brazil for Florida on December 30, 2022, in order not to attend Lula’s inauguration two days later. In his final hours as president, Mr. Bolsonaro said in a live social media broadcast that he “did all he could” to revert the electoral results “within the four lines of the Constitution” — which is impossible. 

After the 2022 election, groups of pro-Bolsonaro demonstrators set up camps near the Army headquarters in Brasília and other military installations across Brazil. A report by the Justice Ministry issued in 2023 sharply blamed the Army for facilitating the camps, which were crucial for the January 8 riots.

A file found in the email inbox of a Navy official contained a draft authorization for a military operation in Brasília, which would have placed the military in charge of security in the capital hours after the riots started.

Lula chose instead to declare a federal intervention, a different legal instrument, and place the deputy Justice minister in charge of security in the city.

Brazilian economy slow to kick off 2024

Fabiane Ziolla Menezes
Mar 18, 2024 11:27

The Central Bank’s economic activity index (IBC-Br), considered a reliable bellwether of Brazilian GDP data, came in slightly below domestic analysts’ expectations in January. 

The index, which measures the pace of Brazilian economic activity, rose 0.6 percent, compared with a median forecast of 0.65-0.7 percent in analyst surveys. The index slowed from December, when it rose 0.82 percent. Compared to the previous year, however, the IBC-Br is up 3.4 percent.

Because of this annual growth, many analysts see the index as a good omen for the Brazilian economy in 2024. Economist and independent consultant André Perfeito, for example, predicts that Brazil’s GDP will grow 2.2 percent this year, above the market’s median expectation of 1.78 percent, according to the Central Bank’s latest Focus Report. 

According to him, some market analysts have yet to factor into their projections not only more robust growth for this year, but also more persistent inflation.

This scenario, Mr. Perfeito argues, is likely to lead to a revision of expectations for Brazil’s benchmark interest rate. However, few expect any change at this week’s meeting of the monetary policy committee.

Analysts at the research arm of the country’s largest private bank, Itaú BBA, expect the committee not only to cut the rate by another half percentage point to 10.75 percent, but also to maintain guidance for further cuts of the same magnitude.

For Alberto Ramos, Goldman Sachs’ lead economist for Latin America, Brazil’s economic activity in 2024 should continue “to benefit from significant fiscal stimuli (federal fiscal transfers to low-income families with a high propensity to consume), the turnaround in the economic cycle credit and solid growth in real household disposable income,” despite still restrictive domestic monetary conditions, high levels of household debt, and low levels of available margin in the economy. 

Goldman Sachs points to a carry-over effect of 1.2 percent in the first quarter of 2024.

U.S. imposes sanctions on Brazilian gang leader

Cedê Silva
Mar 15, 2024 12:25 (Updated: Mar 15, 2024 12:26)

The U.S. Treasury Department on Thursday announced sanctions against Diego Macedo Gonçalves do Carmo, a member of the First Capital Command (PCC), which the department described as “the most powerful organized crime group in Brazil and among the most powerful in the world.”

Mr. Gonçalves, better known in Brazil by the nickname “Brahma,” is serving an eight-year prison sentence in the city of Porto Velho, in the Amazonian state of Rondônia. The verdict, handed down in late 2022, says Mr. Gonçalves is responsible for laundering BRL 1.2 billion (USD 240 million) for the PCC.

The U.S. Treasury Department said in a statement that “although incarcerated, [Mr.] Gonçalves remains active in PCC affairs, issuing instructions from behind bars.” Operating from inside jail is a hallmark of the PCC, and the criminal group is famous for having been founded inside a prison.

According to the sanctions, any property of Mr. Gonçalves in the U.S. or in the possession or control of U.S. persons must be blocked and reported to the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC). The department added that the move “would not have been possible without the cooperation of Brazilian law enforcement authorities.” The U.S. government has previously sanctioned other members of the PCC.

Inter-American court convicts Brazil for human rights violations

Cedê Silva
Mar 14, 2024 17:26 (Updated: Mar 15, 2024 15:06)

The Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR) announced on Thursday two convictions against Brazil for human rights violations committed by the police. 

The court convicted Brazil for the 2000 murder of Antonio Tavares Pereira, a member of the left-wing Landless Workers Movement (MST). Mr. Pereira was shot and killed by a police officer in the southern city of Campo Largo during a protest for land reform. Another 184 people were injured in the confrontation.

The IACHR concluded that the Brazilian state violated the rights to peaceful assembly and freedom of expression by blocking the demonstrators, unlawfully murdered Mr. Pereira, and used disproportionate force and failed to protect people (including children) by using tear gas, rubber bullets, and other weapons against the crowd of demonstrators. The state also “omitted to carry out a complete and exhaustive analysis on the necessity and proportionality” of the police’s actions.

The ruling, issued in November 2023, orders Brazil to provide medical and psychological assistance to the family of the late Mr. Pereira and to hold a public ceremony to recognize its international responsibility for the case. Brazil must also pay USD 80,000 in compensation to Mr. Pereira’s family.

On the same day, the IACHR also announced a conviction in another case related to a 2002 police operation in the state of São Paulo known as “Operation Little Castelo,” after the road where it took place. 

Police officers fired some 700 bullets at a bus they had ordered to stop, killing 12 people who were allegedly members of a large criminal organization. Several witnesses said that the bus passengers were not carrying guns, which were in the vehicle’s luggage compartment. 

The court concluded that in this case, too, the state failed to conduct an investigation, clarify the facts within a reasonable time, or offer compensation to the victims’ families. The court ordered Brazil to pay USD 80,000 to the families of each of the 12 victims and additional compensation to certain individuals. Similarly, Brazil must also acknowledge responsibility for the killings.

Retail sales pull out of the doldrums in January

Fabiane Ziolla Menezes
Mar 14, 2024 12:20

Retail categories that spent most of last year in the doldrums saw their sales pick up in January. Data from the Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics (IBGE) showed a 2.5 percent monthly increase in sales in the sector, after a 1.4 percent decline in December. 

This is also the first monthly uptick in the data since September 2023, putting retail 5.7 percent above the pre-pandemic operating level (February 2020), but still slightly below (0.8 percent) the peak of the historical series reached in October 2020 — which says a lot about the state of retail in the country and the sector’s difficulty in achieving consistent growth.

January’s sales increase was driven by categories such as fabrics, apparel, and footwear (8.5 percent), computer and communications office equipment and supplies (6.1 percent), furniture and household appliances (3.6 percent), and personal items (5.2 percent) — all categories that had shown mixed results in previous months. 

End-of-year sales combined with a resilient job market may have contributed to this recovery, albeit temporarily, as family debt and delinquency rates remain high, closing 2023 at 77.8 percent and 29.5 percent, respectively. 

Another category that influenced the January result due to its greater weight (55.5 percent) in the overall index was supermarkets, food, beverages, and tobacco. Sales in this segment rose 0.9 percent in January and 4 percent over 12 months. According to the IBGE’s research coordinator, Cristiano Santos, the food segment has grown for 18 consecutive months. 

Despite the recent rise in food prices, the growth in the population’s purchasing power combined with the deflationary process is having a direct impact on the category. When families have extra money, they spend it in grocery stores. Supermarket sales in January were “well above” pre-pandemic levels, up 9.9 percent on February 2020.

In so-called “expanded retail,” sales of cars, motorcycles and parts were up 2.8 percent from December and 11.9 percent from January 2023. 

Another expanded retail segment that grew was food and beverage wholesale, with sales up 16.1 percent from a year ago, an upward trend linked to Brazil’s atacarejo phenomenon.

Future Fuel program advances in Brazil’s Congress

Cedê Silva
Mar 14, 2024 12:10 (Updated: Mar 15, 2024 10:13)

The House on Wednesday approved a bill on the “Future Fuel” program, which will increase the ethanol blend in gasoline to 27 percent from the current 22 percent, thereby reducing the fuel’s greenhouse gas emissions. 

The bill also calls for a gradual increase in the amount of biodiesel blended into diesel sold to consumers from the current 14 percent to as much as 20 percent from March 2030.

The bill was approved by a large majority, with 429 votes in favor and 19 against. Most of the opposition came from hardcore supporters of former far-right President Jair Bolsonaro. All three members of the libertarian Novo party also voted nay. 

The bill also requires airlines to reduce greenhouse gas emissions starting in 2027, but does not set percentage targets for the use of Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF). Rather, it requires airlines to reduce their emissions by 10 percent by 2037.

If the bill also passes the Senate, it could be a major boost for Brazil’s ethanol industry. The country is already one of the world’s largest producers of ethanol, and the increased blending rate would create even more demand. 

The ethanol and biofuels industry has been the target of intense lobbying and political pressure. In November, the National Oil Agency (ANP) approved a resolution allowing the use of imported biodiesel in the mandatory blend with fossil diesel; the following month, the government backtracked under pressure from Brazil’s vegetable oil industry association and suspended imports.

The energy transition debate is also pitting the agricultural lobby (which favors ethanol) against the fossil fuel lobby.

Congressman Tarcísio Motta, of the left-wing Socialism and Freedom Party, said in the House that the bill’s provisions on carbon capture would open a loophole for companies to continue polluting.

Brazil’s Central Bank named Best Monetary Authority

Fabiane Ziolla Menezes
Mar 14, 2024 11:59

Central Banking, a publication specializing in finance and coverage of monetary authorities, awarded the Central Bank of Brazil as the best in its field this year. 

The magazine cited the “excellent conduct” of the country’s monetary policy amid the Covid pandemic and the challenge of putting into practice the institution’s autonomy, recently granted by law.

Chairman Roberto Campos Neto’s work during the health crisis was also the main reason why he received the prestigious Central Banker of the Year award from The Banker magazine in 2021.

Other international organizations also praised the actions of the Central Bank during the pandemic. It was the first to cut interest rates to generate liquidity in times of social isolation and reduced economic activity, as well as one of the first to raise the country’s benchmark interest rate to contain the inflationary effects of the economic recovery.

Central Banking’s award also highlighted the commitment of the Brazilian Central Bank to transparency, innovation, and sustainability. 

The publication highlighted the Central Bank’s direct contact with the population through seven social networks, on which it has 1.8 million followers, and a weekly live broadcast called LiveBC on the institution’s YouTube channel — a very different communication strategy from many of its peers, which are much more closed and indecipherable to ordinary citizens. 

The magazine highlighted the country’s innovation initiatives — such as the Central Bank’s PIX instant payment system, launched in late 2020 and fully controlled by the monetary authority. 

In addition to being used by more than 70 percent of the population, PIX has turned out to be a new source and avenue of innovation for the entire financial ecosystem. 

The publication also wrote that the authority “made the code to PIX open source, so other central banks can use the coding,” which means more innovation will be shared globally as well.

In Central Banking’s evaluation, inflation in Brazil is under better control than in many advanced economies, and the authority’s autonomy “has ensured greater consistency in policy during a transition of government.”

A recent survey by banking federation Febraban showed that Brazilians began 2024 more concerned (67 percent) about inflation than in 2023 (54 percent). This is mainly due to the rise in food prices in recent months. Another factor that could hinder a more robust recovery in retail is the likely slowdown in the labor market.