"Car Wash": A week after the death of Judge Zavascki, Brazilian Supreme Court authorises to resume of Odebrecht testimonies

Chief Justice Cármen Lúcia of Brazil's Supreme Court has authorised assistant judges who had been working with the late Justice Teori Zavascki to resume formal proceedings as of today (Jan 24), to examine plea bargain statements heard from Odebrecht building giant executives in the “Car Wash” corruption investigation.

Justice Zavascki was the judge in charge of the Car Wash case in the Supreme Court. He interrupted his court holidays to examine 77 plea bargain statements heard from Odebrecht executives and admit them as evidence in the Car Wash probe, but he died in a plane crash last Thursday (19).

Zavascki had already authorised his assistant judges to begin hearing the whistleblowers to verify that they had made their statements as part of more than 800 testimonies heard by the Federal Prosecution Service (MPF) out of free will. This is a formal step in the proceedings.

On Monday (23), Justice Cármen Lúcia met with Prosecutor-General Rodrigo Janot, who has the authority to request the Car Wash statements be dealt with as a matter of urgency. During the court holidays, she can authorise emergency actions on proceedings pending before the Supreme Court.

The contents of the Odebrecht files are keenly anticipated by the society and especially the political establishment, and based on prior leaks in the case, expected to implicate dozens of politicians in the Petrobras corruption scandal.

Source: Agência Brasil

Read More

Rosso suspende campanha à presidência da Câmara e aguardará decisão do STF sobre candidatura de Maia

O deputado Rogério Rosso (PSD-DF) não resistiu à força do governo e anunciou na manhã desta quarta-feira (25) a suspensão da sua candidatura à presidência da Câmara. O deputado nunca teve o apoio da direção do partido nem da bancada de 36 colegas que liderou até dezembro. Apesar dos sinais de que desistiria de concorrer – pressionado pelo presidente do partido, Gilberto Kassab, que é ministro da Ciência, Tecnologia e Comunicações do governo -, o parlamentar anunciou que vai esperar decisão do Supremo Tribunal Federal (STF) sobre constitucionalidade do presidente da Casa, Rodrigo Maia (DEM-RJ), à reeleição.

A candidatura de Rosso nunca agradou o Palácio do Planalto, que prefere o atual presidente Rodrigo Maia. Na terça-feira (24), o novo líder do PSD, Marcos Montes (MG), divulgou uma nota em que opta pelo apoio a Maia, desconsiderando o pleito do ex-líder da bancada. O próprio Rosso já tinha divulgado uma carta em que admitia que os colegas de partido e outros apoiadores da sua candidatura optassem por qualquer concorrente. “Suspendi minha campanha para aguardar a decisão do Supremo. Espero que isso aconteça antes do dia 2 [fevereiro] para que haja um controle constitucional”, disse Rosso na manhã desta quarta-feira (25).

Rosso admite retomar a campanha à presidência da Câmara caso o Supremo barre a candidatura de Rodrigo Maia. A expectativa do parlamentar é que essa decisão da Corte ocorra antes das eleições, previstas para o dia 2 de fevereiro. “Não consigo enxergar viabilidade jurídica e constitucional na candidatura de Rodrigo Maia. Essa candidatura traz insegurança jurídica para o país”, disparou o deputado durante o anúncio de suspensão de sua campanha.

Além de Maia, também disputam o segundo cargo na linha sucessória da Presidência da República o líder do PTB, Jovair Arantes (GO), e o deputado André Figueiredo (PDT-CE). O petebista também apóia o governo, mas denuncia que a reeleição de Maia rasga a Constituição que, no seu artigo 57, proíbe a recondução ao cargo do presidente da Câmara em uma mesma legislatura.

O assunto foi motivo de ação impetrada pelo Solidariedade e pelo PDT questionando no Supremo Tribunal Federal a legalidade da candidatura de Maia. A eleição interna está marcada para o dia 2 de fevereiro. Maia foi eleito em maio para um mandato tampão e substituiu no cargo o deputado cassado Eduardo Cunha (PMDB-RJ).

Fonte: Congresso em Foco

Read More

Petrobras completes $4 billion bond issuance in international market

Petrobras completed a $4 billion bond issuance (known as global notes) in the international capital markets through its subsidiary Petrobras Global Finance B.V. (PGF) on Tuesday (Jan. 17). In a statement on its website, the company said the leverage consisted of $2 billion tranches due on 17th January 2022 and 17th January 2027. The order book was $19 billion, almost five times oversubscribed. The five-year-maturity tranche (2022) was issued at a 6.125% annual yield to investors. For the ten-year tranche, the yield will be 7.37% per year. According to Petrobras, these rates are “significantly lower” than last May's five-year maturity 8.62% per year and ten-year maturity 9% per year.

Considering the recent transactions of major issuers, the sale was completed with the lowest coupon levels compared to Petrobras's traded securities. Coupons are the interest rates the bond issuer pays its investors for bonds in the aftermarket.

Recognition

Petrobras's Financial and Investor Relations Director Ivan Monteiro said the offering made on Tuesday was a success and reflects market recognition for Petrobras's liability management strategy adopted in 2016. “It's also a recognition of the results obtained with the partnership and divestment policy and operational performance,” he added.

The haul will help Petrobras repurchase its bonds due on 2019-2020, prolonging its debt payment term.

Petrobras also pointed out it gained recognition from Latin Finance magazine as the company with the best liability management operation in the international capital market for two similar transactions completed in May and July 2016. Last Thursday (12), it received a Corporate Liability Management of the Year award in New York.

Pre-Salt oil production: new record in 2016

Petrobras’ average oil production in Brazil in 2016 went up 0.75% in comparison to the previous year and reached 2,144,256 barrels per day. According to the company, the result was in line with the established target of 2.145 million and represents an annual all-time high.

 In the pre-salt layer, last year’s annual average was also a record with 1.02 million daily oil barrels, which meant at the time an increase of 33% over the previous year.

Regarding natural gas, the company reached the record result of 77 million cubic meters per day. If this performance is included in the year’s balance, the total production of the company in the country reaches 2.63 million barrels of oil equivalent per day, 1% above 2015’s results, which will also set a new record.

The company’s president, Pedro Parente, also highlighted December’s performance, when other records were broken. Among them, the company’s average oil production in Brazil, which for the first time surpassed the mark of 2.3 million daily barrels, 3% above the results registered in September of the same year. On December 28, the production reached 2.4 million oil barrels.

Sources: Agência Brasil and Mercopress Agency

Read More

Presidente do PT busca apoio para lançar Lula candidato a Presidente da República

Rui Falcão, Presidente Nacional do Partido dos Trabalhadores (PT), afirmou em publicação divulgada na página oficial da legenda nesta 2ª feira (16/01) que os petistas deveriam opinar publicamente sobre a possibilidade de o ex-Presidente Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva ser novamente candidato à Presidência da República. Rui Falcão espera que o apoio público de sua militância ao ex-Presidente Lula possa manifestar-se já no Congresso Nacional do PT, previsto para ocorrer de 7 a 9 de abril.

"Acho que chegou a hora de a militância começar a opinar publicamente. Quem sabe, assim, possamos, durante o 6º Congresso, torná-lo nosso candidato", disse Falcão.

Na semana passada, Lula participou de duas agendas públicas, em Salvador e Brasília, para reiterar que vai andar pelo País em 2017 e que está preparado para ser candidato. Rui Falcão, que acompanhou Lula durante os atos, reforçou que o partido ainda não tomou uma decisão oficial de lançar o ex-presidente como candidato, mas que o PT não cogita "plano B" para a "aspiração nacional", que seria a volta de Lula ao comando do País.

"Tanto quanto em outras ocasiões que tenho presenciado, Lula ainda não admite ser candidato, mas reitera, com muita convicção, que está preparado e sabe exatamente o que é preciso fazer para tirar o Brasil da crise, criar empregos, distribuir renda, reacender o ânimo e a confiança da população", escreveu Falcão.

A partir do lançamento da candidatura, o presidente do PT disse que é possível construir uma forte aliança com movimentos sociais e partidos populares, em torno de um programa de "reformas e transformações estruturais".

Fonte: Estadão

Read More

Mercosur and EU feel 2017 as a "window of opportunity” to push ahead the idea of "irreversibility" of a trade agreement

Negotiations for an ample trade and cooperation agreement between the European Union and Mercosur are strategic, essential and must be urgently concluded, said Ramon Jauregui, head of the Euro-chamber for Latin America delegation, following on the recent accords signed by the EU with Ecuador and Cuba.

 “Mercosur is of enormous significance for Europe and we are entering a context of uncertainty with the arrival of Donald Trump to the White House”, pointed out Jauregui, a member of the European Parliament who added the urgency of signing the agreement which is pending since 1999 and was re launched in 2010.

Jauregui admitted that items such as beef, rice and sugar are considered “vulnerable” for Europeans and non-negotiable for Mercosur, despite the fact that the EU Agriculture Commissioner Phil Hogan last November called on the South American block to moderate its aspirations.

However Mercosur sources indicate that the three are part of an EU ten-item sensitive list and argue the accord has a raft of benefits for Europe regarding manufacturing, auto-parts, the chemical industry, among others.

Nevertheless Mercosur sources indicate that 2017 represents “a window of opportunity”, not necessarily to conclude the accord but to advance and give the talks credibility and a sense of irreversibility.

In effect and looking ahead to the new round of talks scheduled for next March in Buenos Aires, both sides have agreed to leave for further on the “sensitive lists”, which includes in effect beef and ethanol. Argentina is one of the world's leading exporter of ethanol.

But EU has its own problems: France is holding presidential and legislative elections in the first half of this year and has expressed concern about agriculture, a decisive sector for any aspiring political force wanting to reach Paris. Jauregui feels this is clear evidence of a lack of unity among the 28-member EU when they have to face a Trump administration in Washington.

Mercosur has a more positive approach according to statements from Brazilian foreign minister Jose Serra, “with Brexit and Trump's victory, friends must unite”. In effect Jauregui has pleaded EU Foreign affairs commissioner Federica Mogherini “to take advantage” of the current situation when all indicates that a Trump administration might very well emphasize a protectionist policy.

Likewise a potential vacuum in Latin America could be occupied by China, despite the close historic and cultural roots with Europe, and not forgetting that most of manufactured goods or with added value from Latam are exported to Europe, thus “Europe should stop looking at its belly button and concentrate in Latin America”.

Finally Jauregui recalls that 2017 took off with the EU trade agreement with Ecuador, and joins Colombia and Peru, and in coming months a similar scenario will take place with Cuba, conditioned to cooperation in human rights issues.

“Let's not forget the significance of these latest moves, since Trump has anticipated he will turn back all the agreements reached by the US with Cuba, under the Obama administration”.

Source: Mercopress Agency

Read More