Stories for October 18th 2017

Wednesday, October 18th 2017 - 12:03 UTC
Political spring ahead for Macri, if opinion polls results are confirmed on Sunday

Argentine president Mauricio Macri seems to be in the threshold of a new political spring following on the expected results of next Sunday's midterm election when a third of the Senate seats and half the Lower House, plus several governorships will be on dispute.
Wednesday, October 18th 2017 - 11:56 UTC
UK inflation climbs to 3% in September, mainly because of the fall in sterling

The UK's key inflation rate hit its highest for more than five years in September, driven up by increases in transport and food prices. The Consumer Prices Index (CPI) climbed to 3%, a level it last reached in April 2012, and up from 2.9% in August. The pick-up in inflation raises the likelihood of an increase in interest rates - currently 0.25% - next month.
Wednesday, October 18th 2017 - 11:47 UTC
Identification of unknown Argentine combatants buried in Falklands advancing according to agenda

The forensic team from the International Committee of the Red Cross, ICRC, involved in the Falklands Humanitarian Project is currently analyzing the DNA samples taken from the Argentine soldiers remains buried at the Darwin cemetery in the Islands, and defining strategies that should allow the delivery of results to the Argentine, and United Kingdom governments.
Wednesday, October 18th 2017 - 08:42 UTC
Galician fishing industry recovering and investment in new vessels picking up

The Galician fishing industry is undergoing a boom as Spain recovers from the economic crisis that had caused a halt in the construction of new vessels and investments on new processing plants in recent years, Javier Fraga Diaz, director with Spanish bank Abanca's maritime unit (Banca Mar), revealed.
Wednesday, October 18th 2017 - 08:28 UTC
China's credit rating downgraded by S&P, “but might still be too good”

China's credit rating has been downgraded by Standard & Poor's (S&P) because of worries over the rapid buildup of debt in the country. S&P cut China's rating by one notch from AA- to A+, saying its debts had raised “economic and financial risks”.
Wednesday, October 18th 2017 - 08:24 UTC
The Fed started to reduce its US$4 trillion boost portfolio from the financial crisis

The Federal Reserve has started to run down some of the investments it made to boost the US economy after the financial crisis. The Fed holds a US$4.2trn portfolio of US Treasury bonds and mortgage-backed securities, and it will initially cut up to US$10bn each month from the amount it reinvests.
Wednesday, October 18th 2017 - 07:37 UTC
Brazilian Senate challenges Supreme Court and returns suspended lawmaker

The Senate on Tuesday rejected a decision of Brazil's top court and returned a suspended lawmaker to his post, in what critics said was the latest self-protection move by politicians accused of corruption.
Wednesday, October 18th 2017 - 07:21 UTC
OECD suggests “reversing the Brexit process” would boost the UK economy

Reversing the Brexit process would boost the UK economy, the international economic body, the OECD has said. A new referendum or a change of government leading to the UK staying within the EU would have a “significant” positive impact on growth, the OECD said.
Wednesday, October 18th 2017 - 07:16 UTC
The “Amazon Effect” is coming to oil markets

By Irina Slav for Oilprice.com - While OPEC mulls over further steps to once again support falling oil prices, tech startups are quietly ushering in a new era in oil and gas: the era of the digital oil field. Much talk has revolved around how software can completely transform the energy industry, but until recently, it was just talk.