Stories for March 30th 2012
Lula da Silva admits he feared loosing his voice more than dying
Former Brazilian president Lula da Silva said in an interview published this week that he feared losing his voice more than dying when he was diagnosed with larynx cancer.
Argentina reiterates ‘serious suspicions’ about UK nuclear weapons in Falklands’ region
Defence Minister Arturo Puricelli reiterated Argentina’s “militarization” claims in the Falkland Islands and highlighted “serious suspicions” that Britain is using nuclear weapons in the South Atlantic region.
Argentina blasted at WTO for its trade-restrictive measures and lack of transparency
Argentina received a barrage of criticism at the World Trade Organization on Friday where the United States, European Union, Japan and 10 other countries accused it of tying imports up in red tape. They also requested Argentina provide a detailed written explanation of why in its view “these measures and practices are consistent with WTO rules”.
US lottery jackpot stands as a record 640 million dollars; some recommendations
US lottery officials say they are increasing the MegaMillions lottery jackpot to 640 million dollars increasing what was already a world record prize. The previous record jackpot was 390 million dollars in 2007.
PetroChina replaces Exxon-Mobil as world’s largest publicly traded oil producer
Beijing oil company PetroChina has become the world’s largest publicly-traded oil producer, surpassing Exxon Mobil Corp. in production last year, reported several international news agencies.
Spain announced toughest austerity budget since the return of democracy
Spain is cutting 27bn Euros from its budget this year as part of one of the toughest austerity drives in its history. Changes will include freezing public sector workers' salaries and reducing departmental budgets by 16.9%.
German V2 rocket from World War II found in east coast of England
A German V2 rocket from World War II has been found nose down in the mud flats at Harwich Harbour in the east coast of England. Royal Navy divers said it was buried vertically with about 1.5m of its tail exposed at low tide.
For Uruguay “there is not blockade of Malvinas by any country of the continent”
Uruguay reiterated its full and traditional support for Argentina’s sovereignty claims over the Falklands/Malvinas Islands, but at the same time underlined that “there is no blockade to the inhabitants of the Malvinas Islands by any country of the continent”, and clearly differentiated the Cuban and Malvinas blockades.
Rajoy challenged by general strike, recession and more loss of jobs
As Spain heads for its second recession since 2010 and unemployment stands at 23%, workers angry at a labour reform the government calls an “unstoppable” necessity staged a general strike on Thursday, bringing factories and ports to a standstill and igniting flashes of violence on the streets.
US economy expanded 3% in the fourth quarter and incomes even faster
The US economy expanded as expected in the fourth quarter while personal income grew at a much faster pace than previously thought, according to the Commerce Department final estimate released Thursday.
