Brazil's Temer Scraps Asia Trip as Graft and Money Troubles Loom

(Bloomberg) -- There are two explanations why Brazil’s President Michel Temer canceled his trip to Asia this week. Neither is particularly flattering for a head of state.

The first, raised by local media and denied by the presidency, is that he is concerned about graft allegations that resurfaced last week and prompted him to offer a denial in a televised address.

The second, according to a statement on Monday from the presidency, is that the head of Latin America’s largest nation needs to be present to oversee a congressional vote granting the government an extraordinary credit worth up to $373 million, without which Brazil would default.

To make matters worse, it is the second time Temer cancels the same trip, which would have included Vietnam, Singapore, Indonesia, Thailand. In January, he cited medical reasons related to complications from prostate-related urinary obstruction.

To contact the reporters on this story: Raymond Colitt in Brasilia at rcolitt@bloomberg.net, Simone Iglesias in Brasília at spiglesias@bloomberg.net.

To contact the editors responsible for this story: Vivianne Rodrigues at vrodrigues3@bloomberg.net, Matthew Malinowski

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