Stories for May 2018

Friday, May 4th 2018 - 08:25 UTC
Brazil's highest court limits privileges and “impunity” of federal lawmakers

Brazil's highest court voted on Thursday to restrict a legal protection afforded to federal lawmakers that critics say has resulted in impunity, as the country grapples with massive official corruption. The protection known as “privileged standing” allows tens of thousands of politicians to have cases against them tried in higher courts than a normal citizen would.
Friday, May 4th 2018 - 08:21 UTC
Brazilian Agriculture minister formally accused of 2009 bribery scheme

Brazilian prosecutors filed charges against the country’s Agriculture Minister Blairo Maggi on Wednesday, accusing him of orchestrating a bribery scheme in 2009 when he was governor of Mato Grosso state. Prosecutor General Raquel Dodge filed charges at the Supreme Court, according to a written statement from the federal prosecutor’s office.
Friday, May 4th 2018 - 08:09 UTC
Massive raid in Brazil, Uruguay and Paraguay after money laundering ring suspected of moving US$ 1.6bn

Brazilian investigators conducted one of their largest operations against graft ever on Thursday, targeting a money laundering ring linked to powerful politicians and businessmen that moved some US$1.6 billion through offshore accounts in 52 countries.
Thursday, May 3rd 2018 - 08:44 UTC
Uruguay´s soybean crop forecasted to drop 43% because of devastating drought

Due to the recent devastating drought, soybean production in Uruguay is forecast to drop to 1.7 million tons in 2017-18, according to an April 30 Global Agricultural Information Network (GAIN) report from the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
Thursday, May 3rd 2018 - 08:39 UTC
Lack of investor confidence sees the Argentine Peso fall 3.11% against the dollar

Argentina’s peso currency closed down 3.11% on Wednesday at an all-time low of 21.2 per U.S. dollar, even as the central bank continued selling dollars to try to halt the slide of the local currency, traders said. The currency’s sustained weakening showed a lack of investor confidence in Latin America’s third largest economy, which is blighted by one of the world’s highest inflation rates.
Thursday, May 3rd 2018 - 08:33 UTC
Customs union controversy remains at the heart of the UK cabinet

Theresa May has asked officials to draw up “revised proposals” for post-Brexit customs arrangements after a key meeting with her most senior ministers. The Brexit sub committee met on Wednesday to try to agree on a new model to replace the UK's membership of the customs union.
Thursday, May 3rd 2018 - 08:29 UTC
Dominican Republic drops Taiwan and establishes relations with Beijing

The Dominican Republic and China announced on Tuesday they were establishing diplomatic relations as the Caribbean country became the latest nation to dump Taiwan, leaving it with just 19 diplomatic allies around the globe. Taipei said it was “deeply upset” at the decision, which it blamed on “dollar diplomacy”. The move deepens the island's international isolation while its giant neighbor flexes its economic and political might on the global stage.
Thursday, May 3rd 2018 - 08:22 UTC
Pope sends a greeting message to “Mothers of Plaza de Mayo” on their 41st anniversary

Pope Francis sent an audio message for the 41st anniversary of the “Madres de Plaza de Mayo” (Mothers of Plaza de Mayo), who protested against the disappearance of their children during the Dirty War (1976-1983) of Argentina’s military dictatorship.
Thursday, May 3rd 2018 - 08:19 UTC
Congress members from Spain's ruling party divided on the Gibraltar question

Internal divisions on Gibraltar within Spain’s ruling Partido Popular have been laid bare in two versions of a parliamentary motion to be debated in the Foreign Affairs Commission of the Spanish Senate on Thursday.
Thursday, May 3rd 2018 - 08:13 UTC
Euro zone economy grows faster than the UK in the first quarter

The European Union economy slowed in the first quarter of the year, official Eurostat figures have showed. Economic growth in the Euro zone slowed to 0.4% for the period from January to March 2018, compared with 0.7% in the previous quarter. Growth in the 19-country single currency bloc reached 2.5% year-on-year.