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The 13,235 square kilometres of forest lost in the 2020-21 period was the largest swath since 2005-2006

Brazil Amazon deforestation at highest level since 2006

Deforestation in Brazil's Amazon rainforest rose by almost 22% from August 2020 to July 2021 compared with the same period the year before, reaching the highest level in 15 years, authorities said.

World • 19 Nov 21

The operation by 50 officers, in conjunction with the Military Police, took place near the city of Varginha

25 dead after raid on alleged Brazil bank robbers

Twenty-five alleged members of a gang of Brazilian bank robbers were killed yesterday in a vast police operation in Minas Gerais state, a police source told AFP.

World • 01 Nov 21

The final sale of the business had not been expected to complete until next summer

Aryzta concludes sale of business in Brazil

Swiss-Irish food group Aryzta has completed the sale of its business in Brazil to Grupo Bimbo SAB de CV after operating there for almost 35 years.

Business • 15 Oct 21

Jair Bolsonaro says he 'already has the highest immunisation' (file image)

Bolsonaro refuses vaccine, cannot attend soccer match

Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro has confirmed he will not get vaccinated against Covid-19, having previously said he would be the "last Brazilian" to do so.

Coronavirus • 14 Oct 21

Brazil's Gol is to buy or lease 250 electric air taxis from aircraft leasing company Avolon

Avolon in deal with Brazil's Gol for 250 air taxis

Brazilian airline Gol Linhas Aereas Inteligentes has agreed a deal with aircraft leasing company Avolon to buy or lease 250 electric air taxis.

Business • 21 Sep 21

Gol airline will have to pay women 220 reais (€35) per month for the cost of cosmetics

Airline must pay for women cabin crew's cosmetic costs

Brazilian airline Gol must cover the cosmetic costs of their female flight attendants and airport staff following a labor court's decision, with a union official saying the ruling could influence other professional sectors.

World • 10 Sep 21

The Swiss cement giant has been reorganising its business, including a number of divestments

Holcim to sell Brazilian business to CSN for $1 billion

Holcim has agreed to sell its business in Brazil to Companhia Siderúrgica Nacional (CSN) for an enterprise value of $1.025 billion in a move the world's largest cement maker said would help shift its focus.

Business • 10 Sep 21

Aerial view of deforestation in the Amazon caused by the expansion of agricultural areas (file image)

Brazil has near-record year for Amazon deforestation

Deforestation in the Brazilian Amazon reached near-record levels for the 12 months through July, according to newly released figures, the latest bleak news for the world's biggest rainforest under President Jair Bolsonaro.

World • 06 Aug 21

President Jair Bolsonaro in Brasilia, Brazil today

Judge wants Bolsonaro probed over voting fraud claims

A Supreme Court justice in Brazil has ruled that President Jair Bolsonaro should be investigated for unproven claims the country's voting system is riddled with fraud.

World • 04 Aug 21

Jair Bolsonaro, seen here in an image posted on his Twitter account, will undergo tests for an obstructed intestine

Bolsonaro may need surgery after persistent hiccups

Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro will undergo tests for an obstructed intestine after being admitted to hospital with persistent hiccups.

World • 15 Jul 21

A patient with Covid-19 is treated in the ICU of the Municipal Hospital of Parelheiros in Sao Paulo

Third wave hits as Brazil passes half million deaths

Brazil has become the second country after the United States to surpass 500,000 Covid-19 deaths as the South American country grapples with a third wave of the pandemic.

Coronavirus • 20 Jun 21

The State Department issued an advisory asking Americans to reconsider travel due to the risk of Covid-19, upgrading a blanket warning earlier not to go

US eases travel warnings on Japan ahead of Olympics

The United States has eased its warning against travel to a number of major nations including Olympics host Japan, Canada and Mexico after reassessing Covid concerns.

Coronavirus • 08 Jun 21

Demonstrators protest against President Jair Bolsonaro at Paulista avenue in Sao Paulo, Brazil

Brazilians stage more protests against Bolsonaro

Tens of thousands of people in Brazil staged another day of protest against President Jair Bolsonaro, in particular for his chaotic handling of the pandemic, which has claimed nearly 460,000 lives there.

World • 30 May 21

In the past 10 days, the national infection total has jumped from 29,900 to more than 40,500

Bangkok virus spike sparks alcohol ban, venue closures

Alcohol sales are to be banned in restaurants in the Thai capital, Bangkok, from tomorrow, while entertainment venues will be shuttered across the country for two weeks.

Coronavirus • 17 Apr 21

The ruling now leaves Lula da Silva free to run against Jair Bolsonaro for presidency next year

Brazil court upholds annulment of Lula's convictions

Brazil's full Supreme Court upheld a ruling annulling former president Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva's corruption convictions, which cleared the way for him to run for a new presidential term next year.

World • 16 Apr 21

Christ the Protector will stand 43 metres tall

Brazil building new Christ statue, taller than Rio's

A giant new statue of Christ being constructed in southern Brazil will rise even higher than the iconic Christ the Redeemer statue that overlooks Rio de Janeiro.

News Lens • 10 Apr 21

A memorial placed outside the Hospital Municipal Ronaldo Gazolla in Rio de Janeiro for those who have died from the disease

Brazil surpasses 300,000 Covid-19 deaths

Brazil's death toll in the coronavirus pandemic has reached over 300,000 as a deadly surge that has pushed hospitals to the brink made it the second country after the United States to pass the bleak milestone.

Coronavirus • 25 Mar 21

The deal is the first major deal by Carrefour since a possible takeover by Canada's Couche-Tard unravelled in January

French retailer Carrefour buys BIG in Brazil

Shares in Carrefour moved higher today after the French supermarket retailer said it would buy Grupo BIG in a deal that values Brazil's third-biggest food retailer at about $1.3 billion.

Business • 24 Mar 21

The US has stockpiled a total of seven million doses of the two-dose vaccine

Brazil in talks with US to import surplus vaccine doses

Brazil's government has been in talks since 13 March about potentially importing excess Covid-19 vaccines from the United States, the Brazilian Foreign Ministry has said.

World • 20 Mar 21

Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva speaking at a rally in 2018

Brazilian judge annuls former president's convictions

A Brazilian Supreme Court judge has annulled the criminal convictions against former leftist president Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, a move that could allow the popular politician to run in next year's presidential election.

World • 08 Mar 21

Public Health England's Dr Susan Hopkins told a Downing Street press conference how the person was found

How UK found mystery person with variant from Brazil

A team of 40 people, armed with just a single bar code and limited test data, spent days using "dogged determination" to track down the mystery person in the UK infected with the Manaus coronavirus variant.

Coronavirus • 05 Mar 21

Boeing's 737 MAX returned to the skies today with an incident-free commercial flight on Brazi's Gol airline

Boeing 737 MAX returns to sky with Brazil flight

More than 20 months after it was grounded following two deadly crashes, Boeing's 737 MAX returned to the skies today with an incident-free commercial flight in Brazil, AFP journalists on board said.

Business • 09 Dec 20

More than 11,000 square kilometers of rainforest was destroyed in Brazil in the 12 months to August

Deforestation in Brazil's Amazon surges to 12-year high

Deforestation in the Brazilian Amazon surged again over the past year, hitting a 12-year high, according to official figures that drew a chorus of condemnation of President Jair Bolsonaro's government.

World • 01 Dec 20

CRH sold about 2.5 million tonnes of cement in Brazil last year

CRH sells Brazilian cement business for $218m

Building materials group CRH has agreed a deal to sell its Brazilian cement business to Italy's Buzzi Unicem for $218m.

Business • 27 Oct 20

The completion of the sale of Wirecard Brazil to a subsidiary of PagSeguro Digital marks the first asset sale of its global operations

Wirecard sells assets in Brazil, as company winds down

Wirecard has inked a deal to sell its operations in Brazil, its insolvency administrator said today, the first asset of global operations to sell after the company collapsed amid an accounting scandal earlier this year.

Business • 21 Aug 20