Stories for December 2018

Tuesday, December 18th 2018 - 09:35 UTC
Creditors demanding payment of US$ 1.5 billion Venezuelan bond in default

A group of creditors has demanded payment on a US$ 1.5 billion Venezuelan bond that is in default, their lawyer said on Monday, kicking off a long-awaited showdown between creditors and the crisis-wracked OPEC nation. President Nicolas Maduro’s government and state-owned companies owe nearly US$ 8 billion in unpaid interest and principal following this year’s default on bonds amid a hyperinflationary collapse of the country’s once-wealthy socialist economy.
Tuesday, December 18th 2018 - 09:31 UTC
Twitter warns on a “bug-in-help-form” and unusual activity from China and Saudi Arabia

Twitter has warned of “unusual activity” from China and Saudi Arabia related to a bug in a help form. The bug - discovered on 15 November and fixed the day after - could have revealed the country code of users' phone numbers or if their account was locked, the company said.
Tuesday, December 18th 2018 - 09:25 UTC
Bolsonaro disinvites Venezuelan and Cuban presidents to his swearing in

The Brazilian Foreign Ministry on Monday confirmed that it had called off invitations sent to Cuban president Miguel Diaz-Canel and his Venezuelan counterpart, Nicolas Maduro, for the inauguration of President-elect Jair Bolsonaro, local media reported.
Tuesday, December 18th 2018 - 09:23 UTC
Mexico new government first budget committed “to fiscal and financial discipline”

Mexico’s new government avoided major surprises in its closely watched first budget, sticking to promises made to investors who have been jittery about plans for Latin America’s No. 2 economy.
Tuesday, December 18th 2018 - 09:20 UTC
Maduro boasts that the civilian militia has grown to 1.6 million members

Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro said on Monday the country’s civil militia had grown to 16 million members - more than tripling in size from the beginning of the year - and that its mission was to defend the country against external aggression.
Tuesday, December 18th 2018 - 09:17 UTC
Labour's Jeremy Corbyn has called for a no confidence vote in PM Theresa May

The leader of Britain’s main opposition Labour Party, Jeremy Corbyn, said he was calling for a no-confidence vote in Prime Minister Theresa May — a largely symbolic gesture — for not putting her Brexit plan to a vote by lawmakers immediately.
Tuesday, December 18th 2018 - 09:13 UTC
Antarctica wildlife exposed to human linked pathogens, including antibiotic resistant microbes

Infectious diseases are commonly passed along from humans to animals, but a new study is the first to document human-linked pathogens on the isolated continent of Antarctica. The researchers discovered antibiotic-resistant microbes and other bacterial strains in bird poop, raising new concerns about the health of Antarctic bird colonies.
Tuesday, December 18th 2018 - 09:08 UTC
US wins “dolphin safe” tuna-labeling legal battle against Mexico at WTO

The United States won a legal battle over “dolphin safe” tuna-labeling on Friday, when the World Trade Organization’s appeals judges dismissed Mexico’s argument that the U.S. labeling rules violated WTO rules
Tuesday, December 18th 2018 - 09:03 UTC
UK economy growth feeling the uncertainty impact of Brexit: weakest since 2009

British economic growth this year and in 2019 looks set to be the weakest since the country’s last recession, due to a freeze in business investment and weak consumer demand ahead of Brexit, the British Chambers of Commerce forecast on Tuesday.
Tuesday, December 18th 2018 - 09:00 UTC
Brazil's GDP expected to rise 2% in 2019, says farmers' lobby CNA

Brazil's agriculture gross domestic product is expected to rise 2% year-on-year in 2019, compared to a forecasted drop of 1.6% this year, farmer’s union CNA said. CNA laid out an optimistic view for 2019 with positive outlooks for Brazil’s economy and agriculture policy.