Brazil’s best-known writer is making it clear he doesn’t want Britain’s former Prime Minister Tony Blair involved in planning for the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro.
Paulo Coelho has expressed outrage at proposals to hire Blair as an adviser for the games, sending Twitter messages that called the former British leader a “war criminal” for his involvement in the Iraq war and saying Brazilians should be able to handle planning on their own. (more…)
Brazil’s Central Bank has unveiled new banknotes with superior print quality and new security features to prevent counterfeiting.
The new bills unveiled Wednesday are in denominations of 2, 5, 10, 20, 50 and 100 reais, Xinhua reported.
The new notes have different sizes and notches so that they can be easily identified by touch.
Central Bank governor Henrique Meirelles said technological upgrading is needed to make counterfeiting more difficult.
New notes of 50 and 100 reais will start circulating in the first half of 2010, while those of lesser face value will be phased in by 2012.
Those currently in circulation remain valid until complete replacement, so people do not need to rush for new notes, said Meirelles.
Crime, especially kidnappings and fatal muggings, is on the rise in Brazil’s most populous state of Sao Paulo for the first time in a decade, the Folha de S. Paulo newspaper reported Wednesday.
Statistics from the security secretariat show the state, home to nearly a quarter of Brazil’s 190 million people, is suffering a year-on-year surge in murders, robbery and abductions unseen since 2000, the daily said. (more…)
carnival in Rio
Judges in Brazil have scrapped a ban on religious symbols being displayed during Rio de Janeiro’s famed Carnival due to start in two weeks’ time.
The ruling overturned a 2007 decree issued by municipal authorities who thought the exhibition of crosses or statues of saints unseemly in a street parade where near-naked women are the norm.
The Rio judges said the ban constituted a violation of freedom of expression and was a form of censorship. (more…)
Ten Brazilian banks are among the 500 most valuable banking brands in the world, according to a survey conducted by British institution Brand Finance, in partnership with magazine The Banker. Bradesco Bank appears as the highest ranked national brand, in the 9th position, with an estimated value of US$ 13.29 billion.
Next on the ranking are Itaú (US$ 6.91 billion, 25ª position), Banco do Brasil (US$ 6.69 billion, 26ª position), Unibanco (US$ 1.85 billion, 80ª position), Nossa Caixa (US$ 440 million, 232ª position), Banrisul (US$ 284 million, 311ª position), Banco do Nordeste (US$ 220 million, 349ª position), BM&FBovespa (US$ 176 million, 398ª position), Redecard (US$ 159 million, 419ª position) and BIC (US$ 118 million, 490ª position). (more…)
