Stories for February 2011

Tuesday, February 8th 2011 - 17:49 UTC
Rate hikes expected in Brazil and Chile as global commodity prices drive inflation

Global commodity prices continue to be the main driver of inflation in both Brazil and Chile, according to the latest Latin America update report from Capital Economics.
Tuesday, February 8th 2011 - 17:36 UTC
Shell crushing king crabs move into Antarctica Peninsula warming waters

Warming waters along the Antarctic Peninsula have opened the door to shell-crushing king crabs that threaten a unique ecosystem on the seafloor, according to new research by a US-Sweden team of marine researchers.
Tuesday, February 8th 2011 - 17:31 UTC
Meryl Streep plays Lady Thatcher leading up to the Falklands’ conflict

The first photo of Meryl Streep as former British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher was released by Pathé UK Tuesday. Streep is currently filming “The Iron Lady” in London which focuses mainly on the period immediately prior to the Falkland Islands conflict.
Tuesday, February 8th 2011 - 16:29 UTC
Chile exports increase 30% in 2010, led by copper and lumber sales

Chile achieved a record year for exports in 2010, according to a report by ProChile. Exports in 2010 were valued to be 69.6 billion US dollars, up nearly 30% from the 2009 figure, 53.7 billion USD.
Tuesday, February 8th 2011 - 16:25 UTC
Argentina recovers free of FMD status along the “border belt”

Argentina recovered the status of free of foot and mouth disease with vaccination in the “high vigilance” area along the so called “border belt” which limits with Bolivia, Brazil and Paraguay.
Tuesday, February 8th 2011 - 15:43 UTC
As FMD ravages Korea, US beef and pork exports soar

United States beef is enjoying a huge turnaround in Korea with exports making a sharp leap thanks to the devastating foot-and-mouth (FMD) outbreak in the Asian peninsula, according to industry data released this week.
Tuesday, February 8th 2011 - 14:29 UTC
China’s New Year takes off with higher interest rates, third time since October

China's central bank said Tuesday it will increase key lending and deposit rates by a quarter percentage point, effective Wednesday. This is the third People’s Bank of China rise since last October, a move aimed at combating stubbornly high inflation.
Tuesday, February 8th 2011 - 14:05 UTC
Fearing Pinochet 1998 experience, former US president Bush cuts short EU visit

When former Chilean dictator Gen. Augusto Pinochet flew to Europe in 1998 for a vacation and back surgery, little did he know that he would be jailed by British authorities (acting on a Spanish arrest warrant) for human rights violations that occurred during his 17-year dictatorship.
Tuesday, February 8th 2011 - 05:29 UTC
Egypt attempts to put the economy back on movement

The Egyptian government is struggling to finance itself as foreign investors pull out and the currency drops. It had to scale down a bond auction on Monday as state-owned banks failed to stump up enough cash.
Tuesday, February 8th 2011 - 05:22 UTC
When the Kirchners are over, Argentina will be a “minefield not a country”

According to new Wikileaks cables unveiled by Spanish daily El Pais, Argetnina’s former Santa Fe governor Carlos Reutemann told US diplomats that “whoever comes after the Kirchner administrations will inherit a mine field” instead of a country.