
More than six in ten Brazilians are now overweight and obesity affects roughly one in four adults, according to official health data released this week and carried by Agência Brasil. The survey estimates that 62.6% of the population had excess weight in 2024, up from 42.6% in 2006, while obesity (BMI ≥ 30) doubled from 11.8% to 25.7% over the same period.
Add your comment!
An extratropical cyclone forecast to develop offshore in the South Atlantic is already driving growing instability across Santa Catarina, with officials warning that conditions could worsen between Monday, Feb. 2, and Wednesday, Feb. 4. The alerts were issued by Defesa Civil de Santa Catarina and reported by Agência Brasil.
Add your comment!
Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva will undergo cataract surgery on his left eye on Friday, the presidential palace said after preoperative tests were conducted on Thursday in Brasília. The 80-year-old leader returned overnight from Panama, where he attended the International Economic Forum for Latin America and the Caribbean, and spent Thursday at the official Granja do Torto residence.
Add your comment!
Seven sitting heads of government and one president-elect from Latin America and the Caribbean shared the stage in Panama on Wednesday to call for deeper regional integration, an increasingly rare show of cross-ideological alignment in a polarized region. The message was delivered at the International Economic Forum Latin America and the Caribbean, backed by CAF and designed as a high-level convening point for governments, business leaders and multilaterals.
Add your comment!
Brazil’s President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva and Chile’s president-elect José Antonio Kast held their first bilateral meeting in Panama on Tuesday, shortly after arriving for the International Economic Forum for Latin America and the Caribbean — an event promoted by organizers and regional media as a “Latin Davos.”
Add your comment!
Indian conglomerate Adani Group and Brazilian plane maker Embraer announced on Tuesday that they have signed a memorandum of understanding aimed at cooperating on the production of regional aircraft in India. The agreement calls for establishing a domestic supply chain and a final assembly line for Embraer’s E2 family of jets, which seat between 70 and 146 passengers, as well as developing maintenance services and pilot-training programmes. It also leaves the door open to potential local manufacturing of Embraer’s C-390 military transport aircraft.
Add your comment!
Brazil’s President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva held a phone call on Monday with U.S. President Donald Trump, in a nearly hour-long conversation that blended global governance issues with the bilateral agenda. Brazilian media, citing Planalto Palace sources, reported that Lula argued Trump’s proposed “Peace Board” should be restricted exclusively to the future governance of the Gaza Strip and should also contemplate the creation of a Palestinian state—an approach those sources said Trump does not share.
Add your comment!
Brazil again topped the global ranking for killings of trans and travesti people despite a year-on-year decline in recorded murders, according to a new annual dossier released on Monday by the National Association of Travestis and Transsexuals (Antra). The report counted 80 killings in 2025, down from 122 in 2024 — a drop of about 34% that still leaves Brazil in first place for nearly 18 years, the group said.
1 comment
Brazil is heading for a new record production of its 2025/26 grains harvest, mainly soybeans, maize sorghum, sunflower, according to the latest survey by Conab, the country’s agriculture supplies company. Overall the harvest is expected to reach 353.1 million tons, 0.3% higher than the previous farm year, while the area sown has reached 83.9 million hectares, 2.1 million higher than in 2024/25.

Brazil has positioned itself as a strategic player in the global competition for critical minerals such as graphite, nickel, and niobium, which are essential for clean energy technologies, batteries, and defense systems. Both the United States and the European Union have stepped up diplomatic and commercial engagement with Brasília to secure supply deals and cooperation in value chains considered vital for the energy transition and industrial security.