The Independent just said what everyone already knows.

Brazil is booming

It is a 100th birthday party in a well-to-do postcode of Sao Paulo, where the house of our journalist host – he and another writer pal are actually each turning 50 – slips graciously down a slope to a terrace and the chatter is nearly all politics. Then the DJ cuts the music in the middle of a samba everyone knows. They reflexively fill in: “Ò coisinha tão bonitinha do papai” – “Oh daddy’s beautiful little thing”.

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/on-top-of-the-world-why-brazil-is-booming-2022103.html

30 June 2010 | 8.30am
K&L Gates, 110 Cannon Street, London EC4N 6AR
The Brazilian Chamber of Commerce in Great Britain will hold a breakfast at 8.30am, at which the keynote speaker will be Mr Welber Barral, Foreign Trade Secretary from the Brazilian Ministry of Development, Industry and Foreign Trade. This event is kindly sponsored by K&L Gates. More information from brazilianchamber@brazilianchamber.org.uk

Those wanting to join a yellow-shirted crowd in cheering on the seleção in their pursuit of the hexa (sixth World Cup win) have various options, including Guanabara in Covent Garden, Emporio São Paulo, Jungle Drums’ parties in King’s Cross and Camden, and the Shepherd’s Bush Pavilion.

For the fourth consecutive year the Barbican, with the support of the Embassy of Brazil, will be hosting a Brazilian film festival. The features and documentaries that make up Cinema of Brazil – Music and Rhythm (25 June – 3 July)
all have music at their heart. Alongside documentaries about legends such as Vinicius de Morães, Tom Jobim and Caetano Veloso are films revolving around lesser-known strands of Brazilian music such as rap and country.

http://www.barbican.org.uk/film/series.asp?id=869

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Brazil is Latin America’s largest country and the fifth most populous in the world with nearly 193 million people. Its economy is forecast to grow 6.5% this year. A social welfare scheme introduced by President Lula in 2003 has transformed the lives of millions of poor people, although the gap between rich and poor remains high.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/americas/8702891.stm

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The Brazilian government’s recent mediation efforts to persuade Iran to sign a deal on enriching uranium as a way of allaying suspicions about its nuclear programme highlighted Brazil’s ambition to project its influence beyond South America.

Rubens Barbosa, former Brazilian ambassador to the US and the UK, offers his views on his country’s growing international presence:

The world has undergone major political and economic changes in recent years. The era of US unilateralism has ended and new centres of power have emerged,
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3 July 2010 | 7.30pm
Barbican Centre, Silk Street, London EC2Y 8DS
Seductive, melodic vocals and bossa-nova style guitar from legendary Brazilian songwriter, whose music radiates warmth.

21 May – 20 June 2010
Gallery Tavid, 58 St Mary’s Road, Ealing, London W5 5EX
Organised by London-based Ana Cockerill, ‘Brazilians on the Move’ is a group exhibition of paintings by five Brazilian artists (Ana Cockerill, Inha Bastos, Denise Pitagoras, Graca
Ramos and Guache Marques).