TOPIC

/ location

Brazil

The latest news, analysis and opinion on Brazil. In-depth analysis, industry insights and expert opinion.

Capital

Brasília

Head of State

President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva

Head of Government

President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva

Donald Trump

Trump says Colombia’s Petro to visit US, in U-turn from threats to diplomacy

Just days ago, Trump had issued a warning to the South American leader for criticising the US attack that removed Venezuela’s Maduro.

10 Jan 2026 - 3:59AM

European Union

EU agrees to ‘world’s largest’ free-trade zone with Mercosur pact after 25 years

9 Jan 2026 - 9:59PM

Americas and the Caribbean

Brazil’s Lula vetoes law cutting Bolsonaro’s 27-year jail sentence

9 Jan 2026 - 1:23AMvideocam

Americas and the Caribbean

Brazil’s Bolsonaro has brain injury after falling and hitting head in prison

The ex-president had a ‘crisis’ while sleeping in his cell, his wife said in a social media post.

7 Jan 2026 - 2:49AM

Former Brazilian president Jair Bolsonaro gestures after taking medical tests at DF Star hospital in Brasilia in August. Photo: AFP

War and conflict

Opinion | US attack on Venezuela tests moral clarity of the post-war world order

Amid Washington’s use of force, there is a sense that global affairs are drifting towards a modernised version of the law of the jungle.

5 Jan 2026 - 8:30PMvideocam

China-Latin America relations

Venezuela crisis underscores China’s challenges in Latin America

Washington making an example of Maduro as a ‘warning shot’ would create a ‘chilling effect’ across Latin America, observer says.

4 Jan 2026 - 11:01PMvideocam

Switzerland

Explainer | Swiss bar inferno joins long list of world’s worst club fires

A look at some of the worst fires in bars, nightclubs and music venues in past decades, where celebrations turned to tragedy in seconds.

2 Jan 2026 - 2:38PM

The Mountain B pub in Thailand after it was ravaged by fire in 2022. Photo: AP

Americas and the Caribbean

Bolsonaro’s house arrest bid fails, as Brazil court rejects health claims

Brazil’s Supreme Court rejected the former president’s request, citing no health decline, so the ex-leader remains in prison.

2 Jan 2026 - 2:09AM

Electric & new energy vehicles

China’s EV makers to corner one-third of global market by 2030, UBS says

Analysts see China’s EV edge enduring, citing overseas profits and supply chain strengths despite tariffs and Western protectionism.

1 Jan 2026 - 4:30PM

United States

World welcomes 2026 with fireworks, lightshows and hopes for peace

From Paris to Dubai to Sydney, crowds ring in the new year with exuberant celebrations.

2 Jan 2026 - 8:20AMvideocam

Revelers at Times Square in New York for the annual ball drop. Photo: AP

US-China relations

China buys two-thirds of pledged US soybeans as 2025 closes

Beijing has moved to reduce tariffs on the crop and lifted import bans on three US exporters after talks between Xi and Trump.

1 Jan 2026 - 1:44AMvideocam

A combine harvests a soybean field in Tracy, Minnesota, in October. Photo: TNS

China trade

China imposes beef-import quota, adds over-quota tariffs to guard local industry

From Thursday, over-quota imports from Brazil, Australia, US and other trade partners face new duties to help local producers recover amid price declines.

31 Dec 2025 - 9:00PM

Jewellery

Nadine Ghosn on stacking luxury watches with her Crayola and Toothbrush jewellery

The designer likes to stack watches by maisons like Patek Philippe and Audemars Piguet with her brand’s Crayola and Toothbrush jewellery.

30 Dec 2025 - 6:00AM

China-Africa relations

How Algeria could help China plug iron ore gaps and gain pricing power

The Gara Djebilet deposit in the Sahara Desert was discovered decades ago but is only now coming into production.

28 Dec 2025 - 4:00PMvideocam

China’s CRCC has completed laying track on the 6km PK330 Bridge, a final and critical link in a new railway designed to unlock Algeria’s mineral wealth. Photo: CCRC

Electric & new energy vehicles

Chilean firms partner to form giant company to exploit lithium

Last month China approved the planned partnership between state-owned Codelco and private firm SQM, which features Chinese capital.

28 Dec 2025 - 5:17AM

A mining truck loads lithium sulphate at the Atacama salt flat in Chile. Photo: Anadolu via Getty Images

Jair Bolsonaro

Brazil’s former president Bolsonaro has surgery to treat hiccups, wife says

Bolsonaro, 70, had been hospitalised on Wednesday for hernia surgery. In September, he was jailed for 27 years for ‍plotting a coup.

28 Dec 2025 - 7:25AM

Americas and the Caribbean

Brazil’s Bolsonaro backs son’s presidential bid, undergoes hernia surgery

The former president, who is serving a 27-year sentence for plotting a coup, was allowed to leave prison for the operation.

26 Dec 2025 - 10:00AM

China-Latin America relations

Brazil weighs visa-free entry for Chinese tourists and business travellers

Brazil saw nearly 80 per cent growth in Chinese tourists in 2024 and would join only two neighbours offering visa-free entry.

25 Dec 2025 - 12:38AMvideocam

If confirmed, the visa waiver would simplify travel for Chinese visitors to Brazil and could accelerate arrivals to destinations such as Iguazu Falls. Photo: Handout

SCMP Highlights

BYD’s big plans in Brazil, Xpeng tries to go global: 7 EV reads

From EV battery giants in China venturing into shipbuilding to BYD’s ambitious plans in Brazil, here are seven EV stories you may have missed.

24 Dec 2025 - 3:30PM

China-Russia relations

Russian LNG shipments to China surge 143% in November, overtaking Australia

Russian LNG accounted for 23.5 per cent of China’s total shipments, cementing Russia as its top energy partner after President Xi pledged deeper ties.

23 Dec 2025 - 11:00AMvideocam

Asean

Southeast Asian floods set to threaten more wildlife due to climate change

Environmental crimes and poor oversight are also worsening the risks faced by animals and trees.

23 Dec 2025 - 7:39PMvideocam

An elephant clearing logs and debris on December 8 in a village affected by flooding in Pidie Jaya, Aceh province, Indonesia. Photo: AP

China economy

Opinion | Why China has moved to curb steel exports

China’s pivot to emerging markets has kept its export machine running. But frictions are growing and steel is the most visible flashpoint.

23 Dec 2025 - 7:49AM

A worker stacks steel products meant for the export market at a factory in Binzhou, Shandong province, China on April 15. Photo: AFP

Year in Review

10 most read Daily Pulse briefings of 2025

SCMP Plus looks back at the year’s 10 most popular Daily Pulse bulletins, covering China issues related to diplomacy, trade and economics.

22 Dec 2025 - 5:00PM

Americas and the Caribbean

Brazil’s Lula vows to veto bill slashing Bolsonaro’s 27-year prison term

The proposed law could see the ex-president spend just over two years behind bars for an attempted coup.

19 Dec 2025 - 2:09AM

Americas and the Caribbean

Brazil’s Congress passes bill to cut Bolsonaro’s 27-year prison sentence

If successful, the legislation could see Brazil’s former president serve a little over two years in prison for coup plot.

18 Dec 2025 - 1:55PM

The bill provoked protests in cities across Brazil on Sunday. Photo: AFP

China-Latin America relations

BYD plans giant Brazil factory to scale electric bus and truck production

The new plant would dwarf BYD’s current Brazil operation, lifting output from about 600 units over a decade to up to 7,000 a year.

18 Dec 2025 - 5:14AM

BYD’s confidence in Brazil was reinforced in October with the opening of the company’s large passenger vehicle factory in Camacari, in the northeastern state of Bahia. Photo: Handout

China food security

Explainer | What does future hold for Brazil, US in China’s soybean balancing act?

The two countries remain top suppliers, but efforts to promote self-sufficiency are set to reduce reliance on imports.

18 Dec 2025 - 1:12AMvideocam

United States

Opinion | For Trump, the only communists to really dislike are those at home

The limited discussion of China in the new US national security document indicates that the US president’s focus is on domestic challenges to his authority.

17 Dec 2025 - 8:30PMvideocam

Help preserve 120 years of quality journalism.

SUPPORT NOW

Brazil

Trump says Colombia’s Petro to visit US, in U-turn from threats to diplomacy

Just days ago, Trump had issued a warning to the South American leader for criticising the US attack that removed Venezuela’s Maduro.

EU agrees to ‘world’s largest’ free-trade zone with Mercosur pact after 25 years

Brazil’s Lula vetoes law cutting Bolsonaro’s 27-year jail sentence

Brazil’s Bolsonaro has brain injury after falling and hitting head in prison

The ex-president had a ‘crisis’ while sleeping in his cell, his wife said in a social media post.

.css-1m2rp1p{color:#34b8b5;}Opinion | US attack on Venezuela tests moral clarity of the post-war world order

Amid Washington’s use of force, there is a sense that global affairs are drifting towards a modernised version of the law of the jungle.

Venezuela crisis underscores China’s challenges in Latin America

Washington making an example of Maduro as a ‘warning shot’ would create a ‘chilling effect’ across Latin America, observer says.

.css-sioo19{color:#c79a00;}Explainer | Swiss bar inferno joins long list of world’s worst club fires

A look at some of the worst fires in bars, nightclubs and music venues in past decades, where celebrations turned to tragedy in seconds.

Bolsonaro’s house arrest bid fails, as Brazil court rejects health claims

Brazil’s Supreme Court rejected the former president’s request, citing no health decline, so the ex-leader remains in prison.

China’s EV makers to corner one-third of global market by 2030, UBS says

Analysts see China’s EV edge enduring, citing overseas profits and supply chain strengths despite tariffs and Western protectionism.

World welcomes 2026 with fireworks, lightshows and hopes for peace

From Paris to Dubai to Sydney, crowds ring in the new year with exuberant celebrations.

China buys two-thirds of pledged US soybeans as 2025 closes

Beijing has moved to reduce tariffs on the crop and lifted import bans on three US exporters after talks between Xi and Trump.

China imposes beef-import quota, adds over-quota tariffs to guard local industry

From Thursday, over-quota imports from Brazil, Australia, US and other trade partners face new duties to help local producers recover amid price declines.

Nadine Ghosn on stacking luxury watches with her Crayola and Toothbrush jewellery

The designer likes to stack watches by maisons like Patek Philippe and Audemars Piguet with her brand’s Crayola and Toothbrush jewellery.

How Algeria could help China plug iron ore gaps and gain pricing power

The Gara Djebilet deposit in the Sahara Desert was discovered decades ago but is only now coming into production.

Chilean firms partner to form giant company to exploit lithium

Last month China approved the planned partnership between state-owned Codelco and private firm SQM, which features Chinese capital.

Brazil’s former president Bolsonaro has surgery to treat hiccups, wife says

Bolsonaro, 70, had been hospitalised on Wednesday for hernia surgery. In September, he was jailed for 27 years for ‍plotting a coup.

Brazil’s Bolsonaro backs son’s presidential bid, undergoes hernia surgery

The former president, who is serving a 27-year sentence for plotting a coup, was allowed to leave prison for the operation.

Brazil weighs visa-free entry for Chinese tourists and business travellers

Brazil saw nearly 80 per cent growth in Chinese tourists in 2024 and would join only two neighbours offering visa-free entry.

BYD’s big plans in Brazil, Xpeng tries to go global: 7 EV reads

From EV battery giants in China venturing into shipbuilding to BYD’s ambitious plans in Brazil, here are seven EV stories you may have missed.

Russian LNG shipments to China surge 143% in November, overtaking Australia

Russian LNG accounted for 23.5 per cent of China’s total shipments, cementing Russia as its top energy partner after President Xi pledged deeper ties.

Southeast Asian floods set to threaten more wildlife due to climate change

Environmental crimes and poor oversight are also worsening the risks faced by animals and trees.

Opinion | Why China has moved to curb steel exports

China’s pivot to emerging markets has kept its export machine running. But frictions are growing and steel is the most visible flashpoint.

10 most read Daily Pulse briefings of 2025

SCMP Plus looks back at the year’s 10 most popular Daily Pulse bulletins, covering China issues related to diplomacy, trade and economics.

Brazil’s Lula vows to veto bill slashing Bolsonaro’s 27-year prison term

The proposed law could see the ex-president spend just over two years behind bars for an attempted coup.

Brazil’s Congress passes bill to cut Bolsonaro’s 27-year prison sentence

If successful, the legislation could see Brazil’s former president serve a little over two years in prison for coup plot.

BYD plans giant Brazil factory to scale electric bus and truck production

The new plant would dwarf BYD’s current Brazil operation, lifting output from about 600 units over a decade to up to 7,000 a year.

Explainer | What does future hold for Brazil, US in China’s soybean balancing act?

The two countries remain top suppliers, but efforts to promote self-sufficiency are set to reduce reliance on imports.

Opinion | For Trump, the only communists to really dislike are those at home

The limited discussion of China in the new US national security document indicates that the US president’s focus is on domestic challenges to his authority.

Opinion | US attack on Venezuela tests moral clarity of the post-war world order

Explainer | Swiss bar inferno joins long list of world’s worst club fires