Stories for April 23rd 2015

Thursday, April 23rd 2015 - 09:42 UTC
Swedish passport tops the list of most powerful in the world

Having a Swedish passport in your pocket when you go abroad is more beneficial than having travel identification from any other country in the world, according to a new study. European travel firm GoEuro looked into issues such as how easy it is to get a passport, which countries it offers access to without a visa, its price and how long it is valid for.
Thursday, April 23rd 2015 - 09:34 UTC
Vatican confirms Pope visit to Cuba on his trip to United States

Leaders of Cuba's Catholic Church expressed joy Wednesday on learning that Pope Francis will visit the island in September amid the budding Vatican-mediated rapprochement between Havana and Washington. Francis will stop in Cuba before his Sept. 23 meeting in the United States with President Barack Obama.
Thursday, April 23rd 2015 - 09:19 UTC
Sunken Russian fishing vessel found at a depth of 2,700m, off Gran Canaria

Russian flagged fishing vessel “Oleg Naydenov” was found by a remotely operated vehicle 15 miles south of Gran Canaria, at a depth of 2,700 meters, Minister of Development Ana Pastor Julian informed. At first, it had been reported that the ship, which sank last week, could be at about 2,400 meters deep.
Thursday, April 23rd 2015 - 09:07 UTC
NOAA Fisheries names three Latam countries in illegal fishing activities

United States NOAA Fisheries (National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration) has released its 2015 Biennial Report to Congress highlighting U.S. findings and analyses of foreign illegal, unreported, and unregulated (IUU) fishing activities and of by-catch of protected species and shark catch on the high seas for foreign fleets.
Thursday, April 23rd 2015 - 08:54 UTC
Griesa rules hedge funds entitled to details of recent Argentine bond offering and banks must comply

U.S. judge on Wednesday ruled that hedge funds suing over unpaid debt stemming from Argentina's 2002 default are entitled to details of a recent bond offering by Buenos Aires.
Thursday, April 23rd 2015 - 08:45 UTC
Brasil's third biggest builder contracting drastically after Petrobras scandal and bankrupcy

Brazilian engineering conglomerate Grupo OAS expects revenue to shrink more than 50% by 2017 as it sells operations and refocuses on civil construction after filing for bankruptcy protection due to a bribery scandal at a state-run oil company.
Thursday, April 23rd 2015 - 07:09 UTC
Petrobras reveals extent of its losses because of corruption and mismanagement

Brazil's state-run oil giant Petrobras which has been bashed by a wide-spread corruption scandal, reported on Wednesday a 2014 net loss of 21.6 billion Reais (7.2 billion dollars) after taking 50.8 billion Reais in charges.
Thursday, April 23rd 2015 - 05:06 UTC
South Chile volcano erupts: evacuation, flights cancelled, army moves in

Southern Chile's Calbuco volcano erupted on Wednesday for the first time in nearly half a century, spewing a giant funnel of ash high into the sky and prompting authorities to declare a state of emergency. Officials ordered an evacuation for a 20-kilometer radius around the volcano and the Interior ministry rushed in the army to temporarily take control of the province of Llanquihue and the town of Puerto Octay.
Thursday, April 23rd 2015 - 04:50 UTC
Cristina Fernandez invites Russian investors to Argentina; Thursday she meets Putin

“Argentina is a country where it is worth investing in and producing, not only because of its natural resources, also because of the human resources we have” said president Cristina Fernández in Moscow on an official visit to Russia. She praised the “recovery of Argentina's flag carrier that allows connectivity among all the zones in the country, not only the richest ones.”
Thursday, April 23rd 2015 - 02:09 UTC
Record high temperatures over land and sea in March, says NOAA and NASA

The globally averaged temperature over land and ocean surfaces for March 2015 was the highest for the month since record keeping began in 1880. The year-to-date (January–March) globally averaged temperature was also record high, reports the US National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration, together with data from NASA.