
Brazil's Tocantins state says agriculture ministry ruled out bird flu on commercial farm
SAO PAULO, May 28 (Reuters) - Brazil's Tocantins state said on Wednesday the agriculture ministry has ruled out an outbreak of bird flu on a local commercial farm, citing conclusive test results received from the ministry.
There are currently seven potential outbreaks of highly pathological avian influenza in Brazil under investigation, including one on a commercial farm in Rio Grande do Sul, according to the ministry's website.
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Reuters
2 hours ago
- Reuters
Brazil economic growth stays strong, supported by farm output, investments
BRASILIA, May 30 (Reuters) - Brazil's economy posted robust growth in the first quarter despite climbing interest rates as fixed investments, household consumption and strong farm output underpinned activity, pushing inflation to a two-year high. Gross domestic product in Latin America's largest economy rose 1.4% in the January-to-March period from the previous quarter, government statistics agency IBGE said on Friday, in line with the growth forecast in a Reuters poll of economists. GDP expanded 2.9% from a year earlier, below expectations for a 3.2% increase. On the supply side, agriculture stood out with a 12.2% gain from the previous quarter, fueled by a bumper soybean harvest. Services, which make up roughly 70% of Brazil's economy, expanded 0.3% amid a tight labor market, while industrial output slipped 0.1%. On the demand side, investments measured by gross fixed capital formation stood out with a 3.1% rise from the prior quarter. Household consumption also contributed with 1.0% growth, supported by measures from leftist President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva to boost disposable income, including a minimum wage hike. Government spending increased by 0.1%. The strong economic performance came despite the central bank's aggressive monetary tightening, which has raised the benchmark Selic interest rate by 425 basis points since September, to a nearly 20-year high of 14.75%. The government expects soaring interest rates to weigh more on economic activity in the second half of the year, projecting GDP growth to slow to 2.4% in 2025 from 3.4% last year.


Reuters
3 hours ago
- Reuters
Exclusive: Miner Vale misses deadline for power to expand Brazil nickel complex
SAO PAULO/RIO DE JANEIRO, May 30 (Reuters) - Brazilian power grid operator ONS told Reuters it denied miner Vale's ( opens new tab request to increase power consumption at its northern Onca Puma nickel complex, after missing a deadline to confirm the bid. The denial comes as Vale prepares to start up a second furnace at Onca Puma, a $555 million expansion that should help the miner boost nickel production in coming years. Vale told Reuters that despite the denied request it was maintaining its outlook to start operating the new furnace in the second half of this year. The miner plans to raise its global nickel production to as much as 250,000 metric tons in 2030, from around 160,000 tons last year. The second furnace in Onca Puma is expected to add annual output of 15,200 tons. ONS documents seen by Reuters showed Vale in late 2023 asked to increase power consumption at Onca Puma to 200 megawatts at the start of this year. Over the past year, ONS issued documents attesting to the viability of the power consumption increase at Onca Puma, but ONS said Vale did not sign a contract within the stipulated deadline. Vale filed a new request with ONS in February, ONS said, asking for the power consumption increase at Onca Puma to start in June. The request, however, was denied by the national grid operator, which said the additional power had been allocated to another project in its pipeline. Vale told Reuters it is evaluating "technical alternatives" with ONS to enable the approval of its request for the Onca Puma expansion. The miner said it expects to resolve the issue soon. The nominal nickel capacity at Vale's Onca Puma is currently around 27,000 tons per year. The complex accounted for around 10% of Vale's total nickel production last year.


Reuters
17 hours ago
- Reuters
Brazil's Petrobras to commission 52 vessels by 2026-end in $5.1 billion investment
RIO DE JANEIRO, May 29 (Reuters) - Brazil's state-run oil firm Petrobras ( opens new tab will commission 52 vessels by 2026, investing 29 billion reais ($5.12 billion), said Chief Executive Magda Chambriard during an event on Thursday alongside President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva. Without providing further details, Chambriard said the firm will ensure up to 65% in local content for the construction of the vessels, which would help boost Brazil's shipbuilding industry. ($1 = 5.6621 reais)