Tag Archives: BR

World

Seeing snow for the first time at 62: Brazilians revel in icy snap

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July 30 (Reuters) – Temperatures dropped across Brazil on Thursday – with rare snowfall overnight in some places – as a polar air mass advanced toward the center-south of the global agricultural powerhouse, threatening coffee, sugarcane and orange crops with frost.

Cars, streets and highways were blanketed in ice while people took the opportunity to take pictures and play in the snow, building snowmen.

“I am 62 years old and had never seen the snow, you know? To see nature’s beauty is something indescribable,” said truck driver Iodor Goncalves Marques in Cambara do Sul, a municipality of Rio Grande do Sul state, speaking to TV Globo network.

More than 40 cities in the state of Rio Grande do Sul had icy conditions and at least 33 municipalities had snow, reported the meteorology company Somar Meteorologia.

General view of a street covered in snow in Vacaria, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil July 28, 2021, in this picture obtained from social media. Picture taken July 28, 2021. TWITTER @Lho_nardo via REUTERS

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Unusually cold weather in Brazil has already sent international prices for coffee and sugar higher and Friday was forecast to be the coldest day of the year, according to Marco Antonio dos Santos, a partner at weather consultancy firm Rural Clima.

In a report on Thursday, dos Santos said the south of Goiás and Mato Grosso do Sul, states where farmers grow crops like corn, would face low temperatures on Friday as the wave of cold air marched northward.

The polar air mass should move over Sao Paulo and Minas Gerais, major producers of sugar, citrus and coffee, on Friday, bringing freezing temperatures.

According to meteorology company MetSul, winds in the city of Sao Francisco de Paula reached a maximum of 80 kilometres per hour (49 mph), a rare occurrence in Brazil.

“It was worth it. Actually, you almost do not feel the cold because of how exciting the snow is. It is marvellous, it is marvellous!” Brazilian Joselaine da Silva Marques told TV Globo while enjoying the snow in Cambara do Sul.

Reporting by Reuters Television; Editing by Karishma Singh and Sonali Paul

Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

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World

Brazil’s Bolsonaro hospitalized to find cause of hiccups, presidency says

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Brazil’s President Jair Bolsonaro gets in a vehicle after attending Mass at a Catholic church in Brasilia, Brazil July 1, 2021. REUTERS/Adriano Machado/File Photo

BRASILIA, July 14 (Reuters) – Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro was hospitalized on Wednesday to identify the cause of chronic hiccups, the president’s office said, in the latest health scare for the far-right leader who was stabbed in the gut on the campaign trail in 2018.

Bolsonaro went to the military hospital in Brasilia and is expected to be under observation for between 24 and 48 hours, although not necessarily in hospital, the statement said.

“He is feeling good and doing well,” it said.

Local media outlet Globo reported that Bolsonaro had been admitted for unspecified medical testing after feeling abdominal pains during the early hours of Wednesday.

Bolsonaro’s health has been an issue during his presidency, after he was stabbed and seriously injured in the intestines on the campaign trail in 2018.

He has had other scares. In July last year, Bolsonaro caught COVID-19 but recovered. In appearances over the last few months, he has had a stubborn cough. More recently, he has had hiccups, which have led to concerns about his health.

Reporting by Ricardo Brito; Editing by Christian Plumb and Chizu Nomiyama

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World

Brazil’s federal police open probe into Bolsonaro over vaccine deal – source

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BRASILIA, July 12 (Reuters) – At the request of the Supreme Court, Brazil’s federal police has formally opened a probe into President Jair Bolsonaro related to alleged irregularities in the purchase of an Indian vaccine and could now question him, a source with knowledge of the matter said on Monday.

The president has been caught up in allegations of irregularities surrounding the 1.6 billion reais ($316 million) contract signed in February for 20 million doses with a Brazilian intermediary for the vaccine’s maker, Bharat Biotech.

A Brazilian Senate commission investigating the administration’s handling of the pandemic has cited suspicions of overpricing and corruption related to the contract. Some senators have alleged that Bolsonaro did not immediately look into allegations of wrongdoing when he was alerted.

After the reports of irregularities became public, the government suspended the contract.

The scandal has hurt Bolsonaro’s standing in the polls. Many are upset over his handling of the world’s second deadliest coronavirus outbreak, the vaccine corruption allegations and rising prices for fuel, power and food.

Brazilian federal prosecutors and the comptroller general’s office, or CGU, are also separately investigating the alleged irregularities in the deal.

Bolsonaro has denied any wrongdoing.

Reporting by Gabriel Stargardter; Editing by Alexandre Caverni and Aurora Ellis

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World

Brazil to suspend Indian COVID-19 vaccine deal as graft claims probed

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RIO DE JANEIRO, June 29 (Reuters) – Brazil will suspend a $324-million contract for COVID-19 vaccine from India that has mired President Jair Bolsonaro in accusations of irregularities, the health minister said on Tuesday, following guidance by the federal comptroller, the CGU.

The deal to buy 20 million doses of Bharat Biotech’s Covaxin shot has become a headache for Bolsonaro after whistleblowers went public with alleged irregularities. One health ministry official said he alerted the president about his concerns.

Bolsonaro, whose popularity has faded as Brazil’s COVID-19 death toll climbed past 500,000, has denied any wrongdoing, saying on Monday he was not aware of any irregularities.

But thorny questions persist, and may pose problems for him ahead of next year’s presidential vote.

Health Minister Marcelo Queiroga told a news conference his team would investigate the accusations during the suspension.

“According to the preliminary analysis of the CGU, there are no irregularities in the contract but, for compliance, the health ministry chose to suspend the contract,” the ministry said in a statement.

CNN Brasil had earlier reported that the ministry had decided to cancel the contract.

Brazilian federal prosecutors have opened an investigation, citing comparatively high prices of about $15 a dose, quick talks and pending regulatory approvals as red flags.

In a statement, Bharat Biotech said it had followed a “step-by-step” approach for the regulatory approval and supply contract of its vaccine in Brazil, and had not received advance payments from the health ministry.

It added that the pricing of Covaxin had been set between $15 and $20 a dose for supplies to governments outside India.

The deal is also being probed by a Senate panel investigating Brazil’s handling of the pandemic.

One leading opposition senator on the panel, Randolfe Rodrigues, filed a formal criminal complaint against Bolsonaro with the Supreme Court on Monday.

He asked the court to investigate why Bolsonaro “did not take any action after being notified of the existence of a giant corruption scheme in the Health Ministry.”

($1=4.9403 reais)

Reporting by Gabriel Stargardter and Pedro Fonseca; Additional reporting by Uday Sampath in Bengaluru; Editing by Bill Berkrot and Clarence Fernandez

Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

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