Stories for May 17th 2012

Thursday, May 17th 2012 - 21:24 UTC
Spain supports EU/Mercosur trade accord on a “region to region” basis respecting WTO rules

Spain’s Foreign Affairs minister Jose Garcia Margallo said that Madrid supports negotiations for a free trade agreement between Mercosur and the European Union on a “region to region” basis, back stepping from his proposal last April to exclude Argentina following the seizure of YPF from Repsol.
Thursday, May 17th 2012 - 21:19 UTC
Tax-info-exchange accord could see middle-class Argentines abandon Uruguayan banks

The recent tax-info exchange agreement reached between Argentina and Uruguay will make many investors in the Uruguayan financial system take their deposits back to “safes” or “mattresses” in Argentina, warned several economists during a conference on the Argentine economy prospects and its influence on neighbouring Uruguay.
Thursday, May 17th 2012 - 11:52 UTC
Argentine provinces face less revenue and higher rates because of YPF seizure

Argentine provinces are falling back in paying salaries and honouring debts as they face a shortage of cash and almost record rates for issuing bonds in money markets, reports Buenos Aires financial press.
Thursday, May 17th 2012 - 11:48 UTC
World Bank chief economist warns Latam of the “middle-income trap”

In what would be his last speech as part of the organization, Chief Economist and Senior Vice President of the World Bank Justin Lin held a conference at the UN’s Economic Commission for Latin American and the Caribbean (ECLAC) in Santiago de Chile.
Thursday, May 17th 2012 - 11:29 UTC
Falklands recover 370 hectares of Stanley Common made minefields in 1982 by Argentine forces

Thirty years after the end of the Falkland Islands conflict, 370 hectares of Stanley Common south of Sapper Hill recently cleared by BACTEC (mine action and bomb disposal specialists), have been opened to the public, reports the Penguin News.
Thursday, May 17th 2012 - 11:27 UTC
The name HMS Dauntless is no newcomer for the Falkland Islands

In anticipation of the imminent arrival in the Falkland Islands of the Royal Navy’s Type 45 destroyer HMS Dauntless, local historian and author John Allan writes that her predecessor was posted to the Islands in the 1930s.
Thursday, May 17th 2012 - 11:18 UTC
Colombia’s oil company overtakes Petrobras as Latam’s largest company in market value

Colombia’s national oil and gas corporation Ecopetrol has become Latin America's biggest company by market value, overtaking Brazil's mighty Petrobras.
Thursday, May 17th 2012 - 10:41 UTC
“Highly positive” cruise 2011/12 season for Uruguay with 213 vessel calls

As “highly positive” was described the 2011/12 cruise season by Uruguay’s Deputy Tourism minister Lilian Kechichian during the ceremony in the port of Montevideo to receive the last vessel of the season.
Thursday, May 17th 2012 - 10:35 UTC
Raul Castro daughter’s expected at US university for a lecture on sexology

President Raúl Castro's daughter is scheduled to visit California next week to speak at a conference of experts on Latin America during a rare US trip by a member of Cuba's ruling family.
Thursday, May 17th 2012 - 10:30 UTC
Thousands of students take to the streets of Santiago calling for a fairer and quality education

Tens of thousands of students demonstrated on the streets of Chile's capital Wednesday seeking an overhaul of what they call one of the world's priciest and most unfair educational systems.