Stories for May 2013

Thursday, May 16th 2013 - 06:41 UTC
US environmentalist donates 15.000 hectares of pristine Patagonia land for a national park

US millionaire and environmentalist Douglas Tompkins who has dedicated his life to promoting the beauty and wildlife of Patagonia will be donating one of his several estancias of pristine land to the Perito Moreno National Park in the extreme south of Argentina.
Thursday, May 16th 2013 - 05:25 UTC
US scientists with cloning techniques created human embryonic stem cells

For the first time, Oregon State researchers in the US have used cloning techniques to create human embryonic stem cells that could offer hope for conditions such as Parkinson's disease, diabetes and multiple sclerosis.
Thursday, May 16th 2013 - 03:28 UTC
Communist Germany allowed Western pharmaceutical firms testes new drugs in hospital patients

Western pharmaceutical firms allegedly conducted drug tests on unwitting patients in communist East Germany. The lucrative clinical trials enabled the GDR government to bring much needed hard currency according to a report from Deutsche Welle.
Thursday, May 16th 2013 - 03:24 UTC
Chevron agrees to invest 1.5bn dollars in developing YPF shale field in Patagonia

Argentina’s nationalized oil company YPF signed on Wednesday an agreement with US oil major Chevron Corp to define the terms and conditions of Chevron's investment of 1.5 billion dollars in the vast Vaca Muerta shale field.
Wednesday, May 15th 2013 - 22:21 UTC
UK parliament rejects EU referendum amendment despite 114 Tories votes

A total of 114 Conservative MPs have backed an amendment to the Queen's Speech “expressing regret” an EU referendum bill was not part of the government's agenda for the year ahead. Euro-sceptic Tories forced the vote as part of efforts to make Prime Minister David Cameron's pledge for a poll in 2017 binding.
Wednesday, May 15th 2013 - 22:15 UTC
EU recession for the sixth consecutive quarter; France joins the club with 0.2% contraction

Wednesday’s economic growth numbers make it official: the Euro zone is in its longest recession since records began in 1995. The 17-nation economy shrank by 0.2% between January and March, compared with last quarter's decline of 0.6%, deepening the bloc's recession as economic output fell for the sixth consecutive quarter.
Wednesday, May 15th 2013 - 22:09 UTC
Vatican promises transparency and annual reports from the scandal-hit IOR

As part of ongoing efforts to promote transparency and chip away at the myths surrounding what is commonly called the Vatican bank, its new president announced it will have a website by the end of the year and will publish its annual report, according to the Catholic Sentinel.
Wednesday, May 15th 2013 - 21:59 UTC
Paraguay on Independence Day blasts Argentina and Brazil over “power resource exploitation”

President Federico Franco said Paraguay has long cancelled its debts for the construction of two huge shared hydroelectric dams with its powerful neighbours and demanded Argentina pay for the surplus energy it receives and compensation for flooding Paraguayan territory.
Wednesday, May 15th 2013 - 17:26 UTC
North American oil production surge forecasted to transform world market in next five years

The supply shock created by a surge in North American oil production will be as transformative to the market over the next five years as was the rise of Chinese demand over the last 15, the International Energy Agency (IEA) said in its annual Medium-Term Oil Market Report (MTOMR) released this week.
Wednesday, May 15th 2013 - 17:24 UTC
Brazilian Finance ministry top official resigns after ten years in office

Brazil's Deputy Finance Minister Nelson Barbosa, who helped design some of the government's flagship economic projects, has handed in his resignation for personal reasons and will leave the post in June, the ministry announced on Monday.