
Global markets fell Wednesday after more evidence emerged that the global economy is faltering fast and that the Euro zone is heading for a recession as the debt crisis spreads to the bigger economies like Italy and Spain.

A slump the Brazilian currency Real landed Marfrig deeper in the red despite an improved operating result, lifted by takeovers and better tailoring its beef operations to a shortage of cattle.

In a milestone speech on Tuesday anticipating the four years of her next mandate, Argentine President Cristina Fernandez disclosed she would continue with pro-growth policies but also added that a time of ‘fine tuning’ had arrived in which she was willing to address all issues including “investment and inflation” but not through the newspapers.

The president of Spain’s banking group Santander Emilio Botin described Brazil as “a very interesting market for Spain” following a meeting with Brazilian president Dilma Rousseff.

Argentine Industry Minister, Débora Giorgi, came on stage Tuesday at the Industrial Union’s annual conference to defend the “Kirchnerite economic model”, and warned that in order to keep an average growth of 7% as asked by businessmen, they would have to increase their annual investments to 30 billion dollars.

It was to be a “complaints as usual day” plus the announcement Uruguay is poised for another year of record exports, close to 12 billion dollars. But the speaker contracted for the celebration of Exporter’s Day left the Uruguayan business audience and government officials quite surprised.

“Negotiations are on the right track” and should be concluded in coming months, said Uruguayan sources adding that one of the current difficulties is what will happen with the Argentine negotiating team, following December 10 when re-elected President Cristina Fernandez takes office for her second consecutive four year mandate.

Uruguay’s Vice president Danilo Astori downplayed the effects of Argentina’s restrictive measures for the purchase of dollars and forecasted an excellent summer season with hundreds of thousands of Argentines tourists visiting Uruguay.

Uruguay’s Central bank sees “few probabilities” of a strong deceleration in emerging economies or a ‘significant’ fall in commodities prices even when lately there has been a drop in the value of grains although still above their historic average.

Brazil’s Foreign Affairs minister Antonio Patriota said Brasilia supports Uruguay in its controversy with France following President Nicholas Sarkozy claim, at the recent G20 summit, that Uruguay was a ‘fiscal haven’.