Mercosur

• Friday, November 28th 2003 - 20:00 UTC

  Chávez opponents in move to trigger referendum.

  Opponents of Hugo Chávez, Venezuela's president, are due to begin a four-day drive today Friday to collect at least 2.4m signatures to trigger a recall referendum on Mr Chávez's rule.

• Thursday, November 27th 2003 - 20:00 UTC

  Terrorist attack alert in Buenos Aires.

  Argentina bolstered security measures after domestic and foreign intelligence services warned of the possibility of terrorist attacks against American, British and Spanish interests in the country.

• Thursday, November 27th 2003 - 20:00 UTC

  Winners and losers in Miami.

  Colombia, Peru and Central American countries were among the main winners of the recent Miami Free Trade Association of the Americas, FTAA, ministerial summit, while Canada, Chile and Mexico can be listed as half losers and Venezuela a total looser, according to Andrés Oppenheimer Latinamerican analyst for “The Miami Herald”.

• Thursday, November 27th 2003 - 20:00 UTC

  German president praises Chile.

  German president Johannes Rau currently visiting Mercosur country members praised Chile as an “anchor of stability” in a continent plagued with “conflicts and problems”.

• Thursday, November 27th 2003 - 20:00 UTC

  Petrobras in the “premier” league.

  The Brazilian petroleum consortium Petrobras figures among the twelve most profitable companies in the Americas according to Economática a Miami based business consulting company.

• Thursday, November 27th 2003 - 20:00 UTC

  CAN-Mercosur accord delayed.
  Live sheep and cattle for Jordan.

  The presidential summit of Mercosur and the Community of Andean Nations, CAN, scheduled for mid-December in Montevideo, Uruguay, when a free trade accord was expected to be signed, has been delayed and the meeting will only be at ministerial level, indicated Uruguayan Foreign Affairs Minister Didier Opertti.

• Thursday, November 27th 2003 - 20:00 UTC

  Record low tariffs in Chile.

  The average tariff for Chilean imports reached 3,2% last September, the lowest ever, according to a report from the local Chamber of Commerce, CCS.

• Wednesday, November 26th 2003 - 20:00 UTC

  Far-right militiamen lay down weapons.

  Eight hundred far-right militiamen laid down their weapons on Tuesday in a ceremony the government hoped would bring peace closer but which was condemned by human rights activists as a travesty.

• Wednesday, November 26th 2003 - 20:00 UTC

  Brazilian economy shows signs of recuperation.

  Brazil's economy appears to be emerging from the recession and is showing signs of improvement with industrial production on the rise and a healthy trade surplus, according to Brazilian Central Bank Chairman Henrique de Campos.

• Wednesday, November 26th 2003 - 20:00 UTC

  No end in sight for AIDS epidemic.

  The AIDS epidemic shows no signs of abating, especially in sub-Saharan Africa, and political action to fight the virus is failing, according to a report released.