DJ Brazil's Congress Acts on Reforms as New Protests Loom

DJ Brazil's Congress Acts on Reforms as New Protests Loom

 

  By Tom Murphy

 

  SAO PAULO--In a series of votes Tuesday night and into the early hours
Wednesday, Brazil's Congress began efforts to approve social and political
reforms, even as protestors prepared a new round of demonstrations for later
Wednesday.

 

  Brazil's Chamber of Deputies voted in favor of legislation that would
dedicate royalties from massive offshore oil reserves to public education and
health. The bill gives 75% of such revenue to education and 25% to health. The
legislation must now be approved by the Senate, where it is likely to pass.

 

  By a lopsided vote, the Chamber of Deputies defeated a proposed
constitutional amendment that would have limited the power of prosecutors to
investigate cases of corruption. The proposal was extremely unpopular with
voters and has been a frequent target of the protests that have rocked Brazil
for more than two weeks.

 

  In a speech Tuesday, Senate President Renan Calheiros, speaking in the name
of a broad coalition of congressional leaders, pledged to keep Congress in
session "for the next 10 to 15 days" in order to clear an existing agenda of
reforms. These include bills to increase federal transfer payments to states
and municipalities, a measure that should help localities improve
transportation, education and health services. Congress is also likely to vote
on a bill eliminating most taxes from a list of basic foodstuffs.

 

  Demonstrations have brought as many as a million Brazilians at a time into
the streets of more than a hundred cities. They are protesting issues such as
the high cost of living, rising bus fares, corruption and deteriorating public
services.

 

  At times, the protests have turned violent. At least four deaths have
occurred during demonstrations, according to police. Angry protestors have
clashed with police, who typically wield nightsticks and shields. The conflicts
have yielded hundreds of people injured or arrested. Protests also have turned
into episodes of looting and vandalism.

 

  Protestors were planning a new round of demonstrations for later Wednesday,
with the national capital of Brasilia and the inland metropolis of Belo
Horizonte as the focal points.

 

  In Brasilia, police were already toiling in the early hours of Wednesday to
cordon off an area around the city's downtown plaza, where the modernistic
structures of Brazil's federal government are located.

 

  For the first time since protests began, police in Brasilia will search bags
of demonstrators entering downtown areas. Police said they will also limit
vehicular traffic in certain areas of the city.

 

  In Belo Horizonte, protestors will focus on the city's huge sports stadium,
where Brazil will face off against Uruguay in a Confederations Cup soccer game
Wednesday afternoon.

 

  The Confederations Cup, a warm up to the 2014 World Soccer Cup, has also
been a frequent target for demonstrators, who bemoan the high cost to taxpayers
of preparing stadiums and other public works. Brazil is the host for both the
Confederations Cup and next year's World Cup, while Rio de Janeiro will host
the 2016 Olympics.

 

  Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff is expected to remain in Brasilia
Wednesday for more meetings with congressional leaders.

 

  In a televised news conference Tuesday night, Education Minister Aloizio
Mercadante said the administration was modifying a proposal on political reform
made by the president earlier this week. Instead of holding a referendum aimed
at creating a special constituent assembly on political reform, the
administration will ask Congress to schedule a public vote aimed at approval of
specific electoral and political party reforms.

 

  Congressional leaders and the president of the Brazilian Bar Association on
Tuesday criticized the original proposal as unworkable and, possibly,
unconstitutional.

 

  -Paulo Trevisani in Brasilia contributed to this article

 

  Write to Tom Murphy at tom.murphy@dowjones.com

 

Excerpt from July newsletter

http://www.brazilintl.com/states/matogrosso/korymelby/kory_newsletter/km_newletter.htm#.UcWwjTv1fSs

Brazil Drivers license

http://thebrazilbusiness.com/article/getting-a-driving-license-in-brazil?utm_medium=twitter

Mato Grosso is confirmed as a safe haven for large investments

Mato Grosso is confirmed as a safe haven for large investments 

 

Written by advising Sefaz   

Wed, June 5, 2013 

The State of Mato Grosso maintained its rating (rating) positive for attraction of investments according by Standard & Poor's. In the assessment by the agency, issued on Monday (6-3), the balanced state finances should continue in the coming years. For analysts, the percentage of impairment of current revenues with the cost of public debt must remain in a range below 10%, and investment in infrastructure that is being done, added to new projects already planned to circumvent the problem of logistics faced by the agro-industrial production.

"This new report brings some of the actions that we developed in our management against the State Government, showing investors the world we are working hard to solve our problem of logistics, we have a good business environment. We have been approached by international companies who want to invest in Brazil. They seek information on all states, and the positive rating agency Standard & Poor's is important in the final choice of where these companies will install. Mato Grosso has done its utmost to ensure greater diversification of our economic matrix, "said the governor Silval Barbosa

The report points out that the state scenery is very favorable, in view of the prospect of the approaching World Cup Soccer and the consequent acceleration of works in progress.  

For Finance Secretary of Mato Grosso, Marcel Souza de Cursi, maintaining fiscal balance and economic state is central to this positive rating."Analysts at Standard & Poor's noted that the state treasury has developed strong actions to reduce spending costing action that allows greater public investments in social areas such as security and education.In the sphere of public revenue, the text pointed modernizations applied primarily on the agricultural sector, which resulted in increased revenue, solidifying its own revenues, "he pointed out.

Another point of analysis on international finance Mato Grosso reinforced the importance of the process of renegotiating the debt with the Union. "The text shows the operation performed by the Bank of America, which, coupled with planned actions for payment, we left a commitment of approximately 17% of our revenue to service debt in 2012 to the current 10%. The agency detailed the process and even cites that trading was allowed both the Executive and Legislative national materialize, becoming a reference for refinancing debt through the capital markets, "said the economist and deputy secretary Executive Core Fazendário, Vivaldo Lopes.

According to him, is the addition of a modern and balanced fiscal policy, with the reduction of public debt in state finances, which should ensure the release of funds for further investment in infrastructure in the state.

RECOGNITION

Mato Grosso is the first state in the Midwest to have the recognition of an international rating agency risk, actually two. "Beyond the Standard & Poor's, which rated us BBB-, Moody's assigned a Baa3 Mato Grosso index, considered extremely positive by the market. In Brazil, only the states of São Paulo and Rio de Janeiro have this kind of international certification. In terms of municipalities, it was only obtained by São Paulo and Belo Horizonte, "detailed Vivaldo.

RATING

Risk Rating (rating) is the opinion of a specialist agency risk classification on the ability of a country, state or company to pay off its financial commitments. Scores to indicate a higher or lower risk of the occurrence of a "default", that is, suspension of payment.

Therefore, the experts of these agencies assess the financial situation, the conditions of the world market and expert opinion of private, official and academic sources. Mato Grosso was considered by Standard & Poor's "good paying", him giving investment grade. It is a seal of quality that indicates a very low risk of default. Once received the degree of investment the state can continue climbing classification. It is usually updated annually.

CHS invests in Tocantins

CHS announces investments of US$ 60 million in agriculture in Tocantins

CHS, the largest agricultural cooperative in the United States, will invest about US$ 60 million in Tocantins, ie, more than  R$ 120 million 

Initially, the cooperative will install four silos for grain drying in the state. Earlier on Wednesday, 

June 5, CHS representatives gathered with the Executive Secretary of Seagro - Secretariat of Agriculture and Livestock, Ruiter Padua, to know the potential of each region of the state and thus define the areas that will receive investments. On Wednesday afternoon, the group will head to the South of the state where fly over the municipalities of Alvorada, Araguaçu Sandolândia and looking for a property to install the first silo. The project, according to the company manager in Goias, Leandro Siqueira, aims to do the work and then offer financing to farmers, who plant and sell its production to the cooperative. The first work will be completed within two years. "We have already decided that a silo will be built in the South. As for the rest, we're seeing the best locations for installation," said Leandro Siqueira, adding that the focus is on the production in the state for soy and corn.

Director of the multinational Arene Trevisan explained that CHS chose the Tocantins due to its agricultural potential. "It feels right to invest here, since the expectations of the potential deployment of logistics infrastructure," he said. In Brazil, the CHS is present in the states of Goiás, Mato Grosso, and in the southern states of the country.

The meeting was attended by the mayor of Alvorado of Tocantins.

Multinational CHS is diversified energy, grains and foods. According to the company website, is committed to helping its customers, owners and other stakeholders to increase their business through its domestic and global operations.