The European Commission agreed Tuesday negotiating guidelines for talks with the United States on the world's biggest Free Trade Agreement, stressing a pragmatic approach to even sensitive subjects.
Brazilian mining giant Vale announced on Monday it has suspended the 6 billion dollars Río Colorado potash project in Mendoza province. The mining, main producer of iron had halted the work on the project back in December, awaiting tax breaks for the project to help to compensate for soaring costs related to inflation and exchange rates.
China's inflation rate hit a 10-month high in February, as Lunar New Year festivities drove up food prices. Consumer prices rose 3.2% from a year earlier, with food prices up by 6%. Likewise exports rose more than expected in February, probably indicating that the Chinese economy could be in an upturn.
Brazil announced it will scrap federal taxes on certain food staples and toiletries, the latest in a series of measures to curb prices after a surprise jump in inflation in February triggered alarm bells.
Prime Minister David Cameron was reprimanded by a budget watchdog for claiming that it did not see his austerity agenda as a drag on Britain's economy. In a speech on Thursday, Cameron said his deficit-cutting agenda was not responsible for the country's depressed growth rate which was instead caused by the financial crisis, the Euro zone's problems and higher oil prices - a view he said was endorsed by the independent watchdog.
Ratings agency Fitch added to Italy's mounting problems this week by cutting its credit rating due to the political uncertainty after last week's election, deep recession and rising debt. Fitch lowered Italy's sovereign rating by one notch to BBB plus, with a negative outlook, raising the risk that its next ratings change will be a further downgrade.
Hiring in the US has gathered momentum after government figures showed that the economy created 236.000 jobs in February. The figure was much higher than analysts had expected, and more than the 157,000 jobs created in January.
European Central Bank President Mario Draghi urged indebted governments to move beyond spending cuts and tax hikes and introduce reforms that would boost growth and reduce the “tragedy” of unemployment.
Uruguay finally managed on Thursday to achieve investment grade debt rating from the three major agencies when Fitch raised the country’s rating to BBB-minus from BB-plus, citing economic resilience as well as the political and social stability of the country, squeezed between Brazil and Argentina.
The Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) has approved a 550 million dollars operation for Uruguay to fund the Program for Strategic International Positioning, which aims to substantially increase investment and exports by strengthening the regulatory and institutional framework, promoting and facilitating trade, and boosting entrepreneurial innovation.