Stories for January 2019

Wednesday, January 30th 2019 - 09:46 UTC
Russia and China criticize US sanctions on Venezuela: “they undermine confidence in the international financial system”

Russia and China strongly criticized U.S. sanctions placed on Venezuela, with the former pledging to support the beleaguered President Nicolas Maduro. Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said on Tuesday the sanctions completely undermined confidence in an international financial system that is dominated by the U.S., Russian news agency Interfax reported.
Wednesday, January 30th 2019 - 09:41 UTC
Parliament instructs PM May to renegotiate Brexit's Irish border backstop

British lawmakers on Tuesday instructed Prime Minister Theresa May to demand that Brussels replace the Irish border arrangement known as the “backstop”, in a last-ditch attempt to renegotiate an exit treaty that the European Union says it will not change.
Wednesday, January 30th 2019 - 09:39 UTC
France rejects any EU/UK renegotiation deal and calls for credible proposals

France on Tuesday rejected any renegotiation of the EU-UK divorce deal and urged Britain to make credible proposals after British lawmakers passed a motion instructing their government to secure changes to a key element of the deal.
Wednesday, January 30th 2019 - 09:33 UTC
Ecuador issues 10-year sovereign bonds at 10.75% yield

Ecuador’s finance ministry said it had placed about US$1 billion in 10-year sovereign bonds in the international market. Proceeds from the 10.75% bonds will be used to strengthen the country’s reserves and help fund this year’s budget which has financing needs of about US$ 8 billion, the ministry said in a statement.
Wednesday, January 30th 2019 - 09:14 UTC
Vale vows to cut 10% iron ore output and decommission ten dangerous sludge dams

Vale SA, the world’s largest iron ore miner, on Tuesday vowed to take as much as 10% of its ore output offline in order to decommission ten more dams like the one that burst last week, killing scores of workers and nearby residents.
Wednesday, January 30th 2019 - 09:00 UTC
Corruption remains mainly unchanged in the Americas, according to Transparency International

With an average score of 44 for three consecutive years, the Americas region continues to fail in making any serious inroads against corruption, according to the latest report from Transparency International. Compared to other regions, the Americas is similar to Asia Pacific (average score: 44), but behind Western Europe and the European Union (average score: 66).
Wednesday, January 30th 2019 - 08:54 UTC
Latin American markets outperform world stocks struggling over US/China trade talks

Latin American stocks rose on Tuesday, outperforming world stocks that struggled to hold gains ahead of keenly awaited U.S.-Sino trade talks, earnings of top technology companies and an impending U.S. Federal Reserve decision on interest rates.
Wednesday, January 30th 2019 - 08:48 UTC
Emerging markets vulnerable to US higher rates and stronger dollar

Emerging markets face more downgrades than upgrades this year as foreign debt levels leave them vulnerable to rising U.S. interest rates and the strength of the dollar, according to Fitch Ratings. Latin America, the Middle East and Africa will be impacted more by lower credit scores because of the high share of their foreign-currency debt, said James McCormack, Hong Kong-based global head of the sovereign and supranational group at Fitch.
Tuesday, January 29th 2019 - 21:40 UTC
Chile Announces New Marine Protected Area

Today Chile announced the creation of its newest marine protected area, the Diego Ramírez-Drake Passage Marine Park. Located in the Magallanes region, it is the southernmost park in the Americas and one of the last pristine areas in the world.
Tuesday, January 29th 2019 - 14:28 UTC
Guaidó on military option in Venezuela: All options are on the table

Consulted on possible military option in Venezuela, the declared interim President of Venezuela, Juan Guaidó, told the CNN channel that all the options are on the table “to achieve the cessation of the usurpation”.