Economy

• Saturday, April 21st 2012 - 05:19 UTC

  Argentine import restrictions trigger protests from port of Buenos Aires workers

  

  Freight truckers and customs’ brokers’ staff paralyzed the Buenos Aires port five terminals for a second day running to protest restrictions on import trade recently implemented, which has caused a collapse in port activities and thus jobs.

• Saturday, April 21st 2012 - 04:03 UTC

  Argentina minimizes impact of Spain’s first retaliatory measures

  

  Argentine President Cristina Fernández minimized Spain’s decision to reduce the bio-diesel imports as a retaliation over the expropriation of YPF and called for “calm” after assuring that Argentina “is in condition to absorb” that production in the domestic market.

• Saturday, April 21st 2012 - 03:51 UTC

  Brazil will continue to intervene in support of industry and depressing its currency

  

  Brazilian Finance minister Guido Mantega said on Friday that IMF Managing Director Christine Lagarde makes a mistake in recommending emerging countries not to intervene in the money exchange markets to counter the strong devaluation of currencies from the rich countries.

• Friday, April 20th 2012 - 19:20 UTC

  New FMD strain in Egypt; 100.000 cattle infected, no vaccine for SAT2

  

  A new strain of Foot and Mouth Disease, known as SAT2, has broken out in Egypt and is threatening to spread to other areas of northern Africa and the Middle East.

• Friday, April 20th 2012 - 04:44 UTC

  US fully supports IMF in demanding Argentina submits its stats to IMF for review

  

  The US government considers Argentine is obliged to submit its economic statistics to be validated by the IMF, and Washington will support all efforts from the multilateral organization so that the objective can be achieved.

• Thursday, April 19th 2012 - 19:38 UTC

  World Bank and France criticize Argentina’s “mistake” and international law breach

  

  Argentina's move to nationalize local oil company YPF, controlled by Spain's Repsol, was strongly criticized by the World Bank president Robert Zoellick and French Foreign Minister Alain Juppé.

• Thursday, April 19th 2012 - 04:59 UTC

  Brazil lowers basic rate to 9%, sixth straight reduction and more could come

  

  Brazil lowered its benchmark interest rate to a near-historic low of 9% on Wednesday, as expected, but the central bank surprised with hints that more cuts may follow to revive Latin America's largest economy.

• Wednesday, April 18th 2012 - 22:44 UTC

  Colombia protests before WTO Argentina’s trade restrictions

  

  Colombia has sent a letter to the World Trade Organization protesting Argentina's import restrictions on its products, the government announced Wednesday.

• Wednesday, April 18th 2012 - 08:30 UTC

  Debts and environmental cleanup to subtracted from YPF compensation says Argentina

  

  Argentina accused Spain's Repsol oil company on Tuesday of hiding the true value of its Argentine YPF unit and said a thorough review of its books after seizing control of its offices will affect the compensation paid to its shareholders.

• Wednesday, April 18th 2012 - 08:26 UTC

  Fitch places Repsol on Rating Watch Negative following the YPF takeover operation

  

  Fitch Ratings has placed Repsol YPF, SA's ratings on Rating Watch Negative (RWN) following news that YPF takeover has been set in motion by the Argentine government.