Brazil

• Thursday, March 8th 2012 - 09:42 UTC

  Brazil has become the sixth-largest economy in the world overtaking the UK

  

  Brazil has become the sixth-biggest economy in the world, the country's finance minister announced. The National Institute of Economic and Social Research (NIESR) and other economic forecasters also said that Brazil had now overtaken the UK.

• Thursday, March 8th 2012 - 06:06 UTC

  Brazilian surprise: basic rate down to 9.75%, lowest in years

  

  Brazil’s Central bank on Wednesday surprised analysts by accelerating the pace of interest rate cuts, bringing borrowing costs to 9.75%, below 10% for only the second time on record as it seeks to revive growth.

• Wednesday, March 7th 2012 - 17:23 UTC

  Cristina Fernandez meets Piñera next week: Falklands air link in the agenda

  

  Argentine president Cristina Fernandez is scheduled to travel to Chile next week to meet with her peer Sebastian Piñera and the Falklands issue expected to outstand in the bilateral agenda, particularly air links with the Islands.

• Wednesday, March 7th 2012 - 17:20 UTC

  The city on the Mersey gathered for a final farewell to HMS Liverpool

  

  Crowds gathered on the Wirral and in the heart of Liverpool to bid a fond and final farewell to Type 42 destroyer HMS Liverpool. She sailed into the Mersey last week for a six-day visit, berthing alongside at the Cruise Liner Terminal.

• Wednesday, March 7th 2012 - 17:18 UTC

  Gibraltar Port Authority attends Seatrade Cruise Convention in Miami

  

  The Gibraltar Port Authority is participating in the Seatrade Cruise Shipping Convention which takes place in Miami between the 12th and 15th March 2012.

• Wednesday, March 7th 2012 - 02:54 UTC

  Blatter apologizes to Brazil; requests interview with President Rousseff

  

  FIFA president Sepp Blatter sought on Tuesday to defuse a war of words between FIFA and Brazil by personally apologising for disparaging remarks made by a top official about the country's slow progress in preparing for the 2014 World Cup.

• Tuesday, March 6th 2012 - 17:27 UTC

  Brazil’s reviewing its foreign policy but South America remains the “anchor”

  

  Brazil will keep its foreign policy ‘anchor’ in South America but will review the international because of the latest global changes such as the European Union crisis and the Arab spring.

• Tuesday, March 6th 2012 - 17:06 UTC

  Brazil growth in 2011, slowest since 2003, but 2 million jobs were created

  

  The Brazilian economy last year registered its second-worst performance since 2003 as higher borrowing costs and a currency that rallied to a 12-year high led it to under-perform emerging-market peers China and India.

• Tuesday, March 6th 2012 - 05:23 UTC

  Rousseff and Merkel exchange ideas on ‘monetary tsunami’ and ‘protectionism’

  

  German Chancellor Angela Merkel replied on Monday to Brazilian president Dilma Rousseff claims that Europe is involved in a “monetary tsunami” arguing that developed countries are very concerned with Brazil’s protectionist measures.Merkel and Rousseff met at Hannover where the Brazilian president was invited to open a high technology event.

• Tuesday, March 6th 2012 - 05:06 UTC

  FIFA yields and Valcke apologizes to Brazil for his comments

  

  FIFA Secretary General Jerome Valcke apologized to Brazil on Monday after the country's government officially informed FIFA that it would no longer deal with him because of his remarks about its preparations for the 2014 World Cup.