Brazil's slow pace of preparation for the 2014 World Cup has come under attack from FIFA general secretary Jerome Valcke. Stadium development plus work on airports and the transport system are lagging well behind schedule.
European Union leaders said Croatia is ready to become the bloc’s 28th member, signalling peace in the Balkan region.
Nobel Prize winner Paul Krugman took to his blog in the New York Times to say he didn’t see how Argentina’s default could be seen as a cautionary tale for Greece, and questioned a local economist who assured Argentina was not considered “a serious country.”
The government of the Argentine province of Mendoza is studying documents presented by Vale that could allow the Brazilian miner to continue with a 4.6 billion US dollars potassium project, said an official in Mendoza.
Argentina's trade surplus in May rose 29% from the previous month, thanks to high prices for the country's exports of grains and manufactured goods, the national statistics agency said Thursday.
The UK said that Brazil has the best science base outside the G8, and Brazil’s state-controlled oil and gas giant Petrobras CEO Jose Sergio Gabrielli predicted that his country will shortly become the world's largest market for deep offshore oceanic hydrocarbon exploration equipment.
Brazilian and Spanish candidates are leading the field for the Sunday June 26 upcoming election for the next head of the Food and Agriculture Organization in Rome, the UN agency leading the struggle against global hunger.
As anticipated, Uruguay's central bank raised its benchmark lending rate 50 basis points to 8% on Thursday in an effort to keep inflation within its target range. Uruguay’s consumer price index rose 8.53% in the 12 months through May, far above the official target range of between 4% and 6% set for the 12 months ending June 2012.
The Russian market which has been the main buyer of Uruguayan beef helping to boost cattle prices has virtually ceased operations according to Uruguayan exporters who claim deals are limited to small shipments of livers and tongues.
Oil rose in New York, recovering from a plunge sparked by an International Energy Agency announcement that its members will release crude from strategic reserves.