Mercosur

• Friday, June 6th 2003 - 21:00 UTC

  Free Trade Agreement between Chile and U.S.A.

  Culminating a process begun almost nine years ago, Chile today Friday will become the first South American country to sign a free trade agreement with the United States

• Thursday, June 5th 2003 - 21:00 UTC

  President Kirchner Asks Congress to Remove Judges.

  Argentine President Nestor Kirchner criticized the Supreme Court and called on Congress to remove one or more of its justices, a move that may help consolidate his political power.

• Wednesday, June 4th 2003 - 21:00 UTC

  Chile and Argentina closer.

  Argentina and Chile's Foreign Affairs ministers said that the free trade agreement Chile will be signing this Friday with the United States will not influence the strengthening of the Mercosur process.

• Wednesday, June 4th 2003 - 21:00 UTC

  Interest rates and Lula's popularity remain high

  In spite of his praised performance in the Evian G8 summit in France before the leaders of the world's richest countries, Brazilian president Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva is still pressed by the ongoing interest rate controversy that divides his administration.

• Wednesday, June 4th 2003 - 21:00 UTC

  Greenspan anticipates modest growth.

  Federal Reserve president Alan Greenspan praised the extraordinary resilience of the United States economy and forecasted that the growth rate will quicken, although not as rapidly as anticipated by some analysts.

• Wednesday, June 4th 2003 - 21:00 UTC

  Argentina returns to deflation.

  Following sixteen months of inflation triggered last January 2002, when the Argentine currency was freely floated mainly against the US dollar, retail prices in Argentina have returned to practically zero or even negative.

• Tuesday, June 3rd 2003 - 21:00 UTC

  Breaking News.

  Headlines:
  Hot line Buenos Aires-Brasilia; Trade surplus in Argentina; Controversy over exchange rate; Democrats warn about US deficit; Record crop in Brazil; “We're determined to kill and dismember inflation”; “We're determined to kill and dismember inflation”

• Monday, June 2nd 2003 - 21:00 UTC

  Protectionism, social exclusion and terrorism.

  Brazilian president Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva proposed this Sunday in his speech before the leaders of the G 8 (the seven richest countries plus Russia) meeting in Envian, France the creation of a global fund to combat hunger and poverty. Suggestions for the funding are taxing world arms trade and reinvesting part of the interests accruing from loans to developing countries.

• Monday, June 2nd 2003 - 21:00 UTC

  Kirchner-Powell meeting June 10

  United States Secretary of State Colin Powell will be meeting Argentine President Nestor Kirchner in Buenos Aires next June 10, following the top US official participation in a regional summit in Santiago de Chile.

• Monday, June 2nd 2003 - 21:00 UTC

  Governance and stability.

  Democratic governance as essential for institutional stability will be the main point of the coming Organization of American States General Assembly agenda that is scheduled to take place in Santiago de Chile. Delegations representing 34 countries of the three Americas are expected including US Secretary of State Colin Powell.