Stories for February 2019

Thursday, February 21st 2019 - 09:23 UTC
Macri in Vietnam pledges closer relationship between the two countries

Vietnam sees Argentina as its most important partner in Latin America and hopes to consolidate and strengthen its comprehensive partnership with the country, Prime Minister Nguyễn Xuân Phúc said on Wednesday.
Thursday, February 21st 2019 - 09:20 UTC
Cristina Fernandez corruption trial set to begin next week postponed until May

The corruption trial of former Argentina president Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner, CFK, set to begin next week, has been postponed until May, authorities said on Monday. It is one of several corruption trials facing the opposition Peronist politician, who turned 66 on Tuesday.
Thursday, February 21st 2019 - 09:18 UTC
Swiss bank UBS fined €3.7bn in France for helping clients launder proceeds of tax fraud

Swiss banking giant UBS has been fined €3.7bn (US$4.2bn) in a French tax fraud case. A court in Paris found that the bank had illegally helped French clients hide billions of Euros from French tax authorities between 2004 and 2012.
Thursday, February 21st 2019 - 09:09 UTC
Maduro's regime closes air and sea traffic from Caribbean islands to block humanitarian aid

Venezuela’s government said on Wednesday that it was closing its border to air and sea traffic from three Caribbean islands in an effort to block aid shipments to the country organized by the Venezuelan opposition.
Thursday, February 21st 2019 - 09:05 UTC
Fed changes focus from interest rates to balancing reduction of the US$ 4 trillion it holds in assets

The United States Federal Reserve on Wednesday signalled they will soon lay out a plan to stop letting go of US$4 trillion in bonds and other assets, but policymakers are still debating how long their newly adopted “patient” stance on U.S. rates policy will last.
Thursday, February 21st 2019 - 08:44 UTC
Bolsonaro presents to Congress his pensions overhaul... Where are the necessary votes?

Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro delivered his proposed pension overhaul to Congress on Wednesday, aiming to save over 1 trillion reais (US$270 billion) in a decade by changing tax rates, delaying retirement and creating individual savings accounts.
Thursday, February 21st 2019 - 08:38 UTC
Corbyn tells Labour quitters they should “resign and put themselves up for election”

Labour MPs who have quit the party should “resign and put themselves up for election”, Jeremy Corbyn has said. In a Twitter video, the Labour leader said it was the “democratic thing to do” because they wanted to “abandon the policies on which they were elected”.
Thursday, February 21st 2019 - 08:34 UTC
Taiwan to the rescue of “socialist” Ortega with a 20-year US$ 100 million loan

Nicaragua's Congress on Tuesday accepted a US$ 100 million loan offered by Taiwan, giving a line of support to President Daniel Ortega's government, which has become increasingly isolated after a brutal crackdown on protesters last year.
Thursday, February 21st 2019 - 08:26 UTC
Theresa May's talks in Brussels scale down to “constructive” from “robust”

British Prime Minister Theresa May said she held “constructive” talks in Brussels on Wednesday as she sought concessions on Brexit from a sceptical European Union, her strategy further battered by the defection of three lawmakers.
Thursday, February 21st 2019 - 08:19 UTC
Three Tories abandon the party and join Independent Group over “disastrous handling of Brexit”

Three pro-EU lawmakers from Britain's ruling Conservatives quit over the “disastrous handling of Brexit” on Wednesday, in a blow to Prime Minister Theresa May's attempts to unite her party around plans to leave the European Union.