Stories for July 2009

Tuesday, July 21st 2009 - 11:23 UTC
Mercosur stalled development and Honduras in Friday’s summit agenda

Bureaucratic problems stalling the development of Mercosur is the main issue to be addressed at the presidential summit of the trade block next Friday in Asuncion, Paraguay, according to regional press reports.
Tuesday, July 21st 2009 - 11:19 UTC
Argentina’s primary surplus falls for seventh month running

Argentina's primary budget surplus plunged 65% in June compared to year earlier, marking the seventh straight month of worsening budget results, the government said on Monday.
Tuesday, July 21st 2009 - 11:18 UTC
Former Peruvian president convicted to jail for corruption

The former President of Peru Alberto Fujimori, has been given a seven-and-a-half-year jail term for corruption. The 70-year-old was convicted by Peru's Supreme Court of giving 15 million US dollars in state funds to his spy chief Vladimiro Montesinos. Fujimori admitted making the payment, but said he later repaid the money.
Tuesday, July 21st 2009 - 10:43 UTC
EU/Mercosur talks expected to resume in 2010

European Union Foreign Relations Commissar, Benita Ferrero-Waldner said on Monday that the Spanish presidency of the European Union in 2010 “should be a good moment and opportunity” to resume the stalled discussions of the European block with Mercosur.
Tuesday, July 21st 2009 - 10:06 UTC
Brazil accepts discussions on Itaipú surplus power distribution and prices

Brazil will allow Paraguay to openly sell to Brazilian energy distributing companies its surplus share of the power generated by the Itaipú dam, the largest of its kind in the Americas.
Monday, July 20th 2009 - 13:48 UTC
Signals the worst of the global crisis in Uruguay is moderating

Private analysts and government officials believe there are signs the worst impacts of the global crisis on the Uruguayan economy are moderating. The Leader Index from the local domestic economics analysis think-tank Ceres, last May stabilized after having fallen for seven months running.
Monday, July 20th 2009 - 13:40 UTC
New Argentine economy minister confirms Kirchner’s model

Argentine Economy minister Amado Boudu discarded the implementation of “shock measures” and anticipated some changes will take place “to strengthen some institutions”. But he emphatically confirmed the continuation on course of “the 2003 political project”.
Monday, July 20th 2009 - 13:34 UTC
Number of tourists arriving in Argentina falls for eighth month running

In May, for the eighth month running the number of foreign tourists visiting Argentina has dropped, mainly because of the global crisis, the A/H1N1 virus flu pandemic and domestic inflation.
Monday, July 20th 2009 - 13:32 UTC
Argentina’s trade surplus in six months jumps 91.7%; imports down 38%

Argentina’s trade surplus jumped 91.7%, equivalent to 9.8 billion US dollars in the first half of this year compared to the same period a year ago, according to the latest release from the country’s statistics office, Indec.
Monday, July 20th 2009 - 13:24 UTC
From pumas to penguins in Southern Chile Patagonian safaris

The Chilean Patagonian steppe is the setting for the development of a series of projects designed to link the region's landscape with its native fauna. Pumas, rheas, guanacos and hares feature among the major attractions in this emerging tourist sector.