Stories for October 2008

Thursday, October 23rd 2008 - 20:00 UTC
Argentine contagion helps Madrid market plummet 8%

Shares in Spanish companies with investments in Argentina slumped on the Madrid bourse on Wednesday after proposals to nationalize the country's pension funds were announced.
Thursday, October 23rd 2008 - 20:00 UTC
Ban Ki-moon to discuss global crisis with economists

Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon will meet with a group of eminent economists tomorrow as part of his evaluation of the impact of the global financial crisis on United Nations efforts to achieve the anti-poverty targets known as the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs)
Thursday, October 23rd 2008 - 20:00 UTC
Argentine Navy tests successfully mid range missiles

The Argentine Navy successfully launched two ground-air mid range Aspide missiles, according to an official release on Wednesday from the Ministry of Defence.
Thursday, October 23rd 2008 - 20:00 UTC
Oil price at a 16-month low as energy demand contracts

Oil prices tumbled on Wednesday to a 16-month low amid more evidence that the economic downturn was drying up energy demand. Light, sweet crude on the New York Mercantile Exchange - the benchmark price - settled at 66.75 US dollars, around five dollars lower than the day's high.
Thursday, October 23rd 2008 - 20:00 UTC
PM Brown admits the “r-word” is round the corner

Prime Minister Gordon Brown finally admitted that Britain is likely to suffer a recession - hours after a similar warning from the Bank of England sent the value of the pound plunging to a five-year low.
Thursday, October 23rd 2008 - 20:00 UTC
The dark side of Brazil's “brotherly” policy in the region

Brazil has sent a strong message to those (restless) neighbours that could “threaten the country”, according to reports in the Sao Paulo press.
Thursday, October 23rd 2008 - 20:00 UTC
Self determination enshrined over territorial integrity

The United Nations Fourth Committee has rejected by a vote of 61 - 40 the attempt, made through a draft resolution at the last decolonization Committee of 24 seminar, to include a specific exclusion of territories affected by a sovereignty dispute, such as the Falkland Islands and Gibraltar, from the omnibus resolution that reaffirms inalienable right of self-determination of 11 territories.
Thursday, October 23rd 2008 - 20:00 UTC
Greenspan “mea culpa” and financial crisis before Congress

Former United States Federal Reserve chairman Alan Greenspan confessed on Thursday that he had made “mistakes” in championing the light-touch US financial regulatory system, which led to what he admitted had become a “once-in-a-century credit tsunami”.
Thursday, October 23rd 2008 - 20:00 UTC
Brazilian football super star Pelé joins the cruise industry

On June 28, 2009, the flagship of the Costa fleet will sail the first cruise dedicated to “O' Rey”, the King of world football Pelé. He will be joined by some of Europe's best footballers of the 20th century, presidents of football federations, confederations and clubs, plus great Brazilian performers like Toquinho and Alexandre Pires.
Thursday, October 23rd 2008 - 20:00 UTC
A 50 billion USD package to support Brazilian currency

Brazil's central bank said Wednesday it would pump the equivalent of 50 billion US dollars into currency markets to stem a two-month tumble in the Real that is threatening companies and stoked inflation.