Stories for August 18th 2020

Tuesday, August 18th 2020 - 15:50 UTC
Falkland Islands and oil companies new approach to “stranded assets”

An article in World Oil by Laura Hurst refers to the term “stranded assets” and mentions the case of the Falkland Islands oil industry: the discovery a decade ago of as much as 1,7 billion barrels of crude offshore the British Overseas Territory, and rather than the next frontier, the project to extract energy risks being added to a list of what companies call “stranded assets” that could cost them huge sums to mothball.
Tuesday, August 18th 2020 - 09:55 UTC
Thousands waving national flags demonstrate across Argentina to protest against government plans

Thousands of demonstrators across Argentina's main cities defied social distancing rules to answer calls to protest against a government announcement last Friday to extend containment measures in the Buenos Aires region until Aug 30 and to condemn a controversial reform of the judicial branch.
Tuesday, August 18th 2020 - 09:09 UTC
The US pledges US$ 5bn to Colombia for rural development; Duque supports US candidate for IDB

The United States and Colombia will work together to bring new investment to rural areas of the country, officials said on Monday, as Colombia's president reiterated support for the U.S. candidate to lead the Inter-American Development Bank.
Tuesday, August 18th 2020 - 09:06 UTC
Mexican corruption in Congress exposed with piles of cash changing hands

An unverified video showing piles of cash being handed to Mexican congressional staffers went viral on Monday, fuelling a corruption scandal that is already convulsing the country even as the clip's source and context remain unclear.
Tuesday, August 18th 2020 - 08:57 UTC
“Stampede” at Brazil's Economy ministry, another top official resigns

Brazil's Undersecretary for Macroeconomic Policy Vladimir Kuhl Teles has resigned, according to an announcement in the Official Gazette on Monday, the latest in a string of resignations from the economy ministry.
Tuesday, August 18th 2020 - 08:54 UTC
Brazil and China drafting a protocol for chicken slaughterhouses to avoid Covid-19

Following China's claims to have found traces of the new coronavirus in chicken wings from Brazil, the two countries are in negotiations to establish a protocol to prevent contamination of Covid-19 in slaughterhouses that export to the Asian largest economy.
Tuesday, August 18th 2020 - 08:52 UTC
Peruvian economy contracts 18,06% in June year to year

Peru’s economy contracted 18.06% in June versus the same period a year earlier, the government of president Martin Vizcarra said on Sunday, the fourth straight month of contraction due to the impact of the novel coronavirus pandemic.
Tuesday, August 18th 2020 - 08:45 UTC
Brazilian congressional leader confident the tax reform will be approved this year

Brazil's lower house speaker Rodrigo Maia said on Monday he is convinced Congress will approve tax reform and that it should be done this year to avoid the debate from being influenced by the 2022 presidential election.
Tuesday, August 18th 2020 - 08:34 UTC
US opioid epidemic: US$ 2,2 trillion claim filed against Purdue Pharma and Sackler family

U.S. states claimed they are owed US$ 2.2 trillion to address harm from OxyContin maker Purdue Pharma LP’s alleged role in America’s opioid epidemic, accusing the drug-maker in new filings of pushing prescription painkillers on doctors and patients while playing down the risks of abuse and overdose.
Tuesday, August 18th 2020 - 08:33 UTC
Hottest temperature in at least a century on Sunday in Death Valley, Mojave Desert

One of the hottest air temperatures recorded anywhere on the planet in at least a century, and possibly ever, was reached on Sunday afternoon at Death Valley in California’s Mojave Desert where it soared to 130 Fahrenheit (54.4 Celsius).