Stories for December 31st 2019

Tuesday, December 31st 2019 - 13:15 UTC
On request from Alberto Fernandez, YPF rolls back a 5% increase in fuel prices

Argentine president Alberto Fernandez asked the state-managed oil company YPF to roll back a 5% increase on fuels scheduled to become effective, January first, and which would have a major impact on inflation and food prices.
Tuesday, December 31st 2019 - 13:10 UTC
Argentina will honor payments this week of bonds totaling some US$ 850 million

The Argentine government announced that this week it will honor payments of some US$ 850 million, which correspond to two different sovereign bonds, one of them a century maturing bond issued in 2017 during the administration of ex-president Mauricio Macri.
Tuesday, December 31st 2019 - 12:30 UTC
Bolivia/Spain/Mexico spat escalates with the expulsion of diplomats

Bolivia's interim president Jeanine Añez announced on Monday that the country will expel Mexico's ambassador and two Spanish diplomats, drawing a tit-for-tat response from Madrid as a dispute over an alleged attempt to extract an ex-government aide escalated.
Tuesday, December 31st 2019 - 12:30 UTC
An intriguing Netflix's production, “The prosecutor, the president and the spy”

Netflix will be launching on January first a six-chapter film on one of the most intriguing criminal cases in recent Argentina history, still unsolved, which refers to the killing of former special prosecutor Alberto Nisman, and which was first categorized as suicide.
Tuesday, December 31st 2019 - 12:25 UTC
Swiss tourist in critical condition after mistakenly entering a favela

A septuagenarian tourist to Rio de Janeiro is in critical condition from a gunshot wound after mistakenly entering one of the city's favelas. Police said in a statement that they rescued two Swiss tourists injured in a mugging on Sunday night.
Tuesday, December 31st 2019 - 12:24 UTC
Nicaragua president Ortega's authoritarian regime Ortega releases 91 opposition prisoners

Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega's government on Monday released 91 opposition prisoners held following a deadly crackdown on 2018 protests in the Central American country. Among those released was Belgian-born student leader Amaya Coppens, her family and a local rights organization said.
Tuesday, December 31st 2019 - 12:20 UTC
Brazil fines Facebook for breach of privacy involving some 443.000 users

Brazil's government imposed a 6.6 million real (US$ 1.5 million) fine on Facebook and its local unit for its role in the Cambridge Analytica scandal. The fine is tied to Facebook's unlawful sharing of data from its users in Brazil, Brazil's justice ministry said in a statement posted on its website Monday.
Tuesday, December 31st 2019 - 12:14 UTC
Teenage climate change Greta Thunberg said talking to president Trump would be a waste of time

Teenage climate change activist Greta Thunberg said on Monday that talking to US President Donald Trump at a United Nations summit on global warming would have been a waste of time since he would not have paid any attention.
Tuesday, December 31st 2019 - 12:04 UTC
Microsoft takes down 50 domains used by North Korean hacking groups

Microsoft said on Monday it obtained a court order allowing it to seize web domains used by North Korean hacking groups to launch cyberattacks on human rights activists, researchers and others.
Tuesday, December 31st 2019 - 12:00 UTC
One of the world's largest cruise vessels crashed into the Pier of Palermo, Italy

One of the largest and newest cruise ships in the world has crashed into the pier in Palermo, Italy causing damage. The MSC mega-ship which was only recently christened in early November 2019 has crashed into the pier in Palermo, Italy. No injuries have been reported including passengers and crew onboard the vessel.