Brazil's embattled president Dilma Rousseff with the help of her political mentor. Lula da Silva managed on Thursday night to plea support from the ruling Workers Party, WP, delegates for drastic spending cuts designed to restore confidence in Latin America's largest but battered economy.
Spain's King Felipe VI has removed the title of duchess from his sister Cristina ahead of a trial in which she stands accused of tax fraud charges, in a new move designed to distance the royal family from the case.
The U.S. House of Representatives on Friday dealt a stunning blow to President Barack Obama’s free-trade agenda. A large number of Democrats in the House defied their fellow Democratic president to defeat a critical part of a legislative package, Trade Adjustment Assistance (TAA), which would have provided aid to US workers who might lose their jobs if a major Asia-Pacific trade agreement is forged.
The state of California has ordered some of the largest water cuts on record to help ease shortages during the current drought. The move affects more than 100 senior water rights holders in the state's Delta, San Joaquin and Sacramento regions, including water districts that serve thousands of farmers and others.
Shares on European stock markets have fallen amid reports that senior EU officials have discussed a possible Greek default for the first time. The Athens stock exchange closed on Friday nearly 6% lower. Germany's Dax and France's Cac 40 ended more than 1% lower. Shares also fell in the US, with the Dow Jones index dropping 0.8%.
Interpol has suspended its $29 million agreement to fight illegal betting and match-fixing amid the bribery allegations engulfing world football’s governing body. The 10-year deal was struck in May 2011 and under the agreement, Interpol was to have received 4 million Euros in each of the first two years, followed by 1.5 million Euros in each of the following eight.
Maximo Kirchner, Argentina's president Cristina Fernández son name, has surfaced as a possible candidate running for the coming October presidential and legislative elections, with several hopefuls admitting such an option and praising his conditions and political organization.
Argentina expressed satisfaction with the Brussels Declaration at the end of the two-day European Union/Celac summit because it included strong backing to the country's efforts to change international rules regulating restructuring of sovereign debt and also there was a mention to territorial integrity, a tangent statement referred to the ongoing dispute over Falkland Islands sovereignty.