Stories for September 27th 2007
Magallanes Rockhopper population reaches 316 thousand
Scientists reported this week that the population of Southern Rockhopper penguins on Isla Noir, in southern Chile, the most important colony for the Eudyptes chrysocom family in all of South America, has risen to 316 thousand. Environmentalists stressed the importance of this increase in population, especially in light of the drop in the species' population in previous decades.
Sao Paulo holds Kyoto Protocol “carbon market” auction
A bank from the Netherlands has emerged as the winning bidder in an auction which marks a new phase in the global “carbon market” reports the BBC. Fortis Bank has paid more than 13m Euros for the rights to emit 800,000 tons of carbon dioxide, in the first such auction to be held in a regulated exchange, the Brazilian Mercantile and Futures Exchange (BM&F
Bolivia ignores US warnings and reaches out to Iran
Iran's president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and a delegation of 35 officials arrived Thursday morning in La Paz for a half day visit to Bolivia as part of Teheran's policy to break increasing international isolation, which is welcomed by left leaning regimes in the region anxious to counterweight United States influence.
US grows 3.8% in second quarter; housing still falling
The United States expanded 3.8% in the second quarter in spite of the mid year credit crunch, weak housing and forecasts of a slowing down, according to a revised estimate released Thursday by the US Department of Commerce. In the first quarter the US economy expanded a sluggish 0.6%.
Boeing predicts Latam will buy 1.700 planes in next 20 years
Boeing forecasts that demand for air travel in Latin America will see the region buy more than 1,700 planes worth 120 billion US dollars over the next 20 years.
Winnie the Pooh to keep reaping millions for Disney Group
Winnie the Pooh, the honey loving bear at the heart of a royalty's lawsuit, can continue to reap millions for Disney, a Los Angeles appeals court ruled this week, tossing out the latest challenge to a disputed, lucrative contract.
Venezuela's Mercosur incorporation before Brazilian Congress
The Brazilian Lower House Foreign Affairs Committee begun this week to consider the official documents of Venezuela's incorporation to Mercosur, a long delayed process with still an arduous path ahead before its final approval and which has irritated relations between Caracas and Brasilia.
Fallout from global financial turbulences finds Chile strong
After the International Monetary Fund (IMF) announced that the economic crisis in the United States has not yet peaked, Chile's Minister of Finance Andres Velasco assured government officials this week Chile is prepared for economic turbulence.
Iran rejects Kirchner claims and points to Judiciary “corruption”
Iran strongly rejected on Thursday Argentine President Nestor Kirchner's claim that the country failed to cooperate in a probe of a 1994 terror bombing in Buenos Aires which left hundreds dead and maimed.
US/Peru trade pact vote signals change in Democrats stance
The free trade pact between the United States and Peru won bipartisan support in a crucial Congressional committee this week signaling that some opposition Democrats will be receptive to new trade deals as long as they call on other nations to adhere to international labor and environmental standards.
