Brazil

Petrobras, the state-owned oil company in Brazil, is watching closely?the fallout of conflict in Iran. It will be monitoring oil prices - which soared on Monday -- for the next seven days before making a decision?on fuel pricing. After the weekend attacks by Israel and the U.S., which killed Iran's supreme ruler, Ali Khamenei, global oil prices?soared?. Brent crude rose up to 13% on Sunday and about 8% at noon Brasilia Time, helping Petrobras shares, which export?crude. One source, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, said that this week would be one of observation and could lead to an...

Petrobras, the state-owned oil company in Brazil, posted record exports Tuesday of 1.2 million barrels per day?of crude oil and derivatives for its 'fourth quarter. This is an increase of 79% over the same period last year. In a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission, the company said that the record was achieved as oil production in Brazil increased by about 20% during the same time period, to 2.5 million bpd. This allowed the state-run firm to send more oil overseas. The company had announced previously that it had exceeded its own production guidance for the year. Petrobras also...

Sources and company executives claim that some Brazilian power companies are withdrawing from the energy trading market due to rising credit risk, increased price volatility, and shrinking sales from generators. CPFL &?CTG Brasil are two of the major generators controlled Chinese groups that have stopped "directional trading" in which firms took long or short positions on price fluctuations to profit. Local groups like Capitale, Urca, and Trinity have cut back or stopped trading operations. Brazil's billions-dollar power trading market?operates via bilateral agreements without a central counterparty to monitor leverage. This makes reputation important, especially for independent investors who do not...

Magda Chambriard, the CEO of Brazil's state oil company Petrobras, announced on Tuesday that it has been producing one million barrels per day since Friday at its offshore Tupi Field. The Petrobras' effort to boost production at the declining oilfield, which was once Brazil's largest, led to the achievement. Chambriard stated, "It's the rescue of an important symbol for Brazil." She said in a statement that Petrobras has two giant oil fields, Tupi and Buzios, which have the potential to produce more than '1 million bpd. Both fields are located in Brazil's presalt Santos Basin, off the coasts of Rio...

The Brazilian Superior Labor Court has ruled that staffing levels at all Petrobras sites in Brazil will remain at 80% as negotiations between workers at the state-run company continue to drag out amid a long strike. The ruling of the court on Saturday prohibits worker unions from preventing the transport of workers and equipment into and out of facilities, such as those of Petrobras Logistics subsidiary Transpetro. Sylvia dos Anjos told the press on Sunday that "we?continue to work and ensure production and supply". Petrobras workers began a strike on Dec. 15 The Sindipetro-NF union, which represents 25,000 workers within...

The Brazilian union Sindipetro-NF (one of the largest in Brazil) has rejected the latest proposal from the state-run oil company to end the 12-day strike. It said this in a Friday statement. Sindipetro NF represents?about 25,000 oil industry workers, including those in Petrobras?offshore oil platform in the Campos Basin, which is the second highest oil production area in Brazil. Petrobras stated in a press release that the strike so far has not had an impact on production as they are using contingency crews to continue operations. Sindipetro-NF is the largest union within FUP, a umbrella organization of oil workers. The...

Union leaders and executives have said that a dispute over payment deductions involving about 50,000 retired Petrobras workers may prolong the strike at Brazil's state-owned oil company. The central issue in the strike that has now lasted a week is resolving the deduction of around 20% from 'pensioners' pay slips by the largest pension funds of the company. A company source who spoke on condition of anonymity said that the solution was neither simple nor cheap. The impact, he added, would be in the billions. Union leaders say that deductions are due to a shortfall on the accounts of the...

Flavio Bolsonaro announced on Friday that former Brazilian president Jair Bolsonaro has backed his bid for the presidency next year. This angered markets who had placed bets on a more experienced candidate who would consolidate support among the right. The senator posted on social media about his father choosing him to "carry on our project for nation." Valdemar Costa neto, the leader of Bolsonaro’s right-wing Liberal Party (PLR), confirmed in a press release that Bolsonaro’s eldest child, currently serving time for an unsuccessful coup plot, was the party’s presidential candidate. Brazilian markets were shaken by the news on Friday. The...

Petrobras' CEO stated on Friday that the company could reconsider some of its 15 planned wells in the "Equatorial Margin" because Brent oil prices will likely remain low for the next few years. Petrobras has cut its investment plans for the period 2026-2030 by $500 million up to $2.5 billion. Magda Chambriard, Petrobras' Chief Executive Officer, said at a recent press conference that "we had a large number of wells in the Equatorial margin; some were prioritised, while others were, say, deprioritized based on the Brent crude oil price." She did not specify how many wells would be examined. Petrobras...

Petrobras, the state-run Brazilian oil company, has cut its dividend forecast by almost 2% and reduced expected investments by nearly 2% as part of a five-year plan released on Thursday. The firm is struggling with lower crude prices. Petrobras plans to distribute between $45 billion - $50 billion in ordinary dividends during the period 2026-2030, according to a filing. The firm's previous five-year plan, which was released last year, had the company expecting to pay up to $55billion to shareholders. The new plan does not mention extraordinary dividends, whereas the old one suggested that up to $10 billion in dividends...

Brazil's COP30 Climate Summit faced a crunch-day on Saturday, after all night talks to overcome an impass after the European Union had blocked a deal it claimed would not advance efforts to curb greenhouse gases that are driving global climate changes. The two-week climate conference, billed as an opportunity to demonstrate that nations could still unite to combat climate change in the absence of the United States, was supposed to end on Friday. However the standoff forced the negotiators to work overtime. The Brazilian presidency tried to reach a compromise over a deal which most of the 200 countries attending...

Brazil, the COP30 summit's president, released a draft of a proposed agreement for this year’s U.N. Climate Summit early on Friday. It dropped a proposal that was included in a previous version to develop a plan to move away from fossil-fuels. This issue was one of the most controversial at the two week conference in the Brazilian Amazon city of Belem, attended by nearly 200 government officials. The nations have been arguing over the future for fossil fuels. Their burning releases greenhouse gases, which are the biggest contributors to global warming. The first draft of the deal, which was released...

India has deepened its trade ties with Brazil, signing a pact on Saturday to increase cooperation in mining and minerals. The country is seeking to meet the rising demand for steel at home and to support capacity expansion as a result of a global race to secure raw materials. The agreement was signed by India's PM Narendra Modi, and Brazilian President Luiz inacio Lula Da Silva. Both men arrived in New Delhi this week on a three-day trip. Brazil has large reserves of minerals that are critical for steelmaking. It is one of the top producers of iron ore in...

Vale Base Metals agreed to sell its majority stake in the Thompson Nickel Belt Mine in Manitoba to an investor consortium, which would create a new nickel-producing company in Canada. Exiro Minerals of Toronto, Orion Resources Partners and Canada Growth Fund are part of the consortium. Brazilian mining company Vale has agreed to sign a five-year agreement for the off-take of its 18.9% stake in Exiro Nickel. The new consortium will invest $200 million in order to revive a mine that Vale had been reviewing since last year, when the price of nickel fell to its lowest level in five...

Analysts praised a core profit that was above expectations and predicted a positive reaction to the shares. Rio de Janeiro-headquartered Vale, one of the world's largest iron ore producers, posted a $3.8 billion net loss for the October-to-December quarter, compared to a $694 million loss in the same period of 2024. Analysts polled at?LSEG expected a profit of $2.7 billion. Vale Base Metals reported a $3.5billion impairment of its?nickel assets located in Canada. This was "caused by a downward adjustment in long-term nickel prices based on market estimates". The company also noted a $2.8 billion write-off from deferred taxes assets...

Analysts?and producers say that Paraguay’s soybean crop in 2025/26 is expected to exceed 10 million tons, and could become the biggest ever recorded by the country. StoneX, a South American agricultural?consultancy, revised its estimate of the crop harvested from October to February, increasing it by 500,000 tons. This is a significant increase over the previous estimate, which was 9.65 million tonnes. The crop, according to StoneX, "is among the best recorded ever" in this landlocked South American producer, the report stated. Analysts believe the final production total will depend on the second, smaller crop (or "zafrina") harvested between April-May. StoneX's...

The agency said in a Monday evening statement that the waste piles of Sigma Lithium at a Brazilian mining site do not pose an "imminent threat" and the country's regulator for mining did not see the need to close them down during a recent visit. ANM's Technical Staff visited the mine in January, about a month after labor inspectors had shut down the piles because they warned of an "imminent and grave risk" for workers and local residents. Sigma's share price fell by 30% following the shutdown. The inspectors' decision was reported on January 15, 2019. ANM's report does not...

The?agency? said in a Monday evening statement that the waste piles of Sigma Lithium at a Brazilian mining site do not pose an "imminent danger" and that it did not see any need to close them during a recent visit. ANM's Technical Staff visited the mine in January, about a month after labor inspectors had shut down the piles because they warned of an "imminent and grave risk" for workers and local residents. Sigma's stock fell by 30% when it was reported that the inspectors had made their decision on January 15th. ANM's report does not change the Brazilian Labor...

The firms announced on Thursday that the Aluminium Corporation of China (Chinalco), and Rio Tinto had agreed to purchase a controlling interest in Companhia Brasileira de Aluminio, for a total amount of 4.69 billion Reis ($903.61 millions). The companies said that together they will purchase 68.6% or 446.6 millions shares of Brazilian aluminium manufacturer CBA at a price of 10.50 reais per share. They added that the Brazilian conglomerate Grupo Votrorantim will purchase the controlling stake. Both will launch a tender for the remaining CBA shares, a move that is required by Brazilian regulations and could lead to the removal...

The price of iron ore continued to fall on Wednesday as the Chinese Lunar New Year dragged down the demand for steel, and feedstocks. The most-traded contract for May iron ore on China's Dalian Commodity Exchange ended the daytime trading 0.7% lower, at 783 Yuan ($112.74) per metric ton. As of?0705, the benchmark March iron ore traded on Singapore Exchange was down 0.79% at $103 per ton. According to Chinese?broker Everbright Futures, the downstream steel demand has shrunk with the cessation in construction projects as we approach the Chinese Lunar New Year Holiday. The company Vale announced on Tuesday that...

The price of iron ore continued to fall on Wednesday as the Chinese Lunar New Year approaches, and construction projects slow down. This is affecting the demand for steel, feedstocks, and other metals. As of 0311 GMT, the most-traded contract for May?iron ore on China's Dalian Commodity Exchange was trading 0.44% lower. It was 785 yuan (US$113.02) per metric ton. The benchmark March ore at the Singapore Exchange fell 0.5% to $103.3 per ton. According to Chinese broker Everbright Futures, the?demand for downstream steel has decreased as construction projects have ceased in the run-up to Chinese Lunar New Year. The...

A securities filing late on Monday showed that Brazilian miner Vale had halted operation at sites where water had overflowed. Analysts estimate the units account for about 2 percent of Vale's iron ore production outlook for this coming year. Vale reported that the city of?Congonhas ordered the suspension and adoption of emergency measures and control measures after the overflows. The overflows also affected the site of steelmaker CSN, and damaged a nearby river. In Brazil's Minas Gerais, the state of Minas Gerais, there were two separate but nearby areas that experienced heavy rain on Sunday. Analysts?said that the suspension of...

The Minas Gerais government announced on Monday that overflowing water from a Brazilian mining area owned by Vale had caused environmental damage when it reached the Maranhao River. The flooding on Sunday in two separate but nearby areas, both owned by Vale and hit by heavy rain, led to a flood at the site of steelmaker CSN. According to the government of Minas Gerais and the companies, there were no injuries in the incidents near Ouro Preto or Congonhas. Vale will be required to 'implement emergency measures' to clean up the affected area, monitor the river and submit an environmental...

According to two sources familiar with the situation, negotiations with Emirates Global Aluminium are slowing down, but that does not mean that the potential sale of Brazilian aluminium manufacturer Companhia Brazileira de 'Aluminio has stopped. One source said that the process is still competitive. One person and another source involved in the negotiations said that China's Aluminum Corporation?of China, and a potential third bidder were actively pursuing the deal. One?of the sources stated that an announcement could be made within days or even weeks. Negotiations could still fail, however. CBA's shares were up 5% in Brazil at mid-morning trading on...