
Argentina's government said on Thursday that it had agreed with France's Total to work together to boost natural gas output by 2 million cubic metres per day at two Patagonian fields where YPF – which is being nationalized – also has a stake.

Argentina's move to nationalize local oil company YPF, controlled by Spain's Repsol, was strongly criticized by the World Bank president Robert Zoellick and French Foreign Minister Alain Juppé.

“You build history the way you can, not the way you want”, said Argentine president Cristina Fernandez during an official ceremony in which she referred to the “recovery” of the country’s main oil and gas corporation YPF, in the midst of the dispute with Spain’s Repsol.

Argentina will seize natural-gas producer YPF Gas SA as part of plans to boost control of its natural resources and increase production, two days after seizing oil producer YPF SA.

The Falkland Islands sovereignty dispute has reached the US capital triggering an interesting exchange in the Washington Post, involving the newspaper and the ambassadors from Argentina and the UK.

The US government finally broke silence regarding the YPF controversy and expressed “deep concern’ over the expropriation plans. A State Department spokesman said on Wednesday the plans “could have an adverse effect on the Argentine economy.”

European Commission Vice President Antonio Tajani addressed Argentina's plan to expropriate 51% of the 57.43% share-package Spanish ran Oil Company Repsol owns, during a speech at the European Parliament on Wednesday. From Rome Italy also voiced its concern with events regarding YPF and trade restrictions.

Shares of Argentina’s biggest energy company Repsol-YPF plunged 32.7% on Wednesday in Wall Street after transactions resumed following three days of suspension.

Colombia has sent a letter to the World Trade Organization protesting Argentina's import restrictions on its products, the government announced Wednesday.

Brazil’s Mines and Energy minister Edison Lobao discarded that operations of Petrobras in Argentina could be affected by the decision from the administration of President Cristina Fernandez to expropriate YPF from Spain’s Repsol.