Stories for December 2016

Friday, December 30th 2016 - 17:40 UTC
An attempt to bypass Lords could turn into fresh legal challenge for Brexit

A fresh legal challenge to triggering Brexit could be launched unless UK Prime Minister Theresa May allows the House of Lords to vote on the issue. Businesswoman Gina Miller, who helped bring the action which saw the High Court insist the Commons must vote on invoking Article 50, has said the upper House of Parliament also needs a “proper debate”.
Friday, December 30th 2016 - 17:36 UTC
The 100 Bolivar notes refuse to die: Maduro extends their use until January 20

Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro says his government will extend the use of 100-bolivar notes to January 20, after a plan to withdraw those bills from the economy sparked protests across the country and widespread looting.
Friday, December 30th 2016 - 17:27 UTC
Argentina beef exports begin to pick up and could reach US$ 1bn this year

Argentina's beef exports totaled 193,000 tons between January and October, up 10% from the same period last year, the government said, a year after it rescinded export taxes and restrictions.
Friday, December 30th 2016 - 17:18 UTC
Brazil's unemployment rate reaches a record high of 11.9%: this means 12.1m out of a job

Brazil's unemployment rate from September to November reached a record high of 11.9%, the country's statistics agency IBGE said. This new rate is a significant year-on-year hike over the same period in 2015, when it stood at 9%.
Friday, December 30th 2016 - 17:15 UTC
Temer will not bail out heavily indebted Brazilian states

After months of bailing out Brazil's most iconic city and state, Rio de Janeiro will not be getting their debts renegotiated anytime soon. Brazil president Michel Temer said he will veto plans to renegotiate loans with Rio, Minas Gerais and Rio Grande do Sul states. All three states are economic powers of Brazil and have fallen on hard times over the last three years.
Friday, December 30th 2016 - 17:12 UTC
Brazilian banks drastically cutting costs to lower interest rates

The Brazilian government has not pressured state-run banks to free up credit and reduce their spread, but interest rates are likely to fall as the central bank's benchmark Selic rate continues to drop, state-controlled Banco do Brasil Chief Executive Officer Paulo Rogerio Caffarelli said.
Friday, December 30th 2016 - 17:04 UTC
Odebrecht bribes' return ratio: for each million paid out it earned US$ 4m in contracts

According to the Swiss Public Prosecutor, Odebrecht regularly paid Brazilian politicians and political parties from secret accounts in Geneva. For every US$1 million that the company paid out to politicians, it earned back US$4 million in contracts.
Friday, December 30th 2016 - 05:00 UTC
Prosecutor Nisman's filing to be reopened and investigated, Criminal Court rules

The Federal Criminal Court of Appeals Thursday ordered the reopening of the case filed by former AMIA Special Prosecutor Alberto Nisman four days before he was found dead against then Argentine President Cristina Fernández de Kirchner for the alleged cover-up of the Iranian nationals suspected of being behind the AMIA bombing in July, 1994.
Friday, December 30th 2016 - 04:16 UTC
Venezuela second on world murder ranking with 28,479 yearly killings, says NGO

The new figures leave President Nicolas Maduro's country behind only El Salvador. Honduras comes in third but way behind the front runners. The Venezuelan Observatory on Violence (OVV) NGO announced that 28,479 killings over the course of the year is tantamount to 91.8 such deaths per 100,000 inhabitants.
Friday, December 30th 2016 - 03:48 UTC
Ceasefire between Syria and rebels effective since midnight, but gunshots already reported

A ceasefire between Syria's government and rebel forces started at midnight on Friday after nearly six years of civil war. The agreement, brokered by Russia and Turkey which back opposing sides in the conflict, got off to a dubious start as clashes had already been reported less than two hours after the truce's beginning.