Daimler (DAIGn.DE) will hire 800 more staff for its Brazilian commercial vehicles business and keep open a U.S. truck plant as the two key markets show signs of reviving, the world’s biggest truckmaker said.

The moves offer a glimmer of hope for commercial vehicle manufacturers slammed by the global economic and credit crisis and could signal a broader uptick because truck sales often act as a leading indicator of economic health.

But industry officials have warned against expecting any quick rebound for truckmakers until the global economy accelerates and boosts demand for goods transport.

“The hiring of new staff makes clear that we trust the Brazilian economy will see a slight upturn after the global economic crisis,” Mercedes-Benz do Brasil President Gero Herrmann said in a statement released in Germany. (more…)

Brazil’s government is facing rising criticism at home over its handling of the Honduran crisis as senior lawmakers accuse it of allowing the ousted president to use its embassy as a political platform.

Manuel Zelaya, who was toppled as Honduran president by a coup in June, has virtually taken over the Brazilian embassy with dozens of supporters and has given numerous interviews to foreign and domestic media.

His sudden return from exile a week ago triggered violent protests in the capital Tegucigalpa and placed Brazil at the center of the Honduran power struggle and an international diplomatic crisis.

Government and opposition legislators in Brazil’s Congress have urged President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva to curtail Zelaya’s political engagement in the embassy. (more…)