Economy

• Saturday, June 12th 2010 - 04:49 UTC

  As US economy picks up, revenue increases and budget deficit drops slightly

  

  The US government posted a smaller budget deficit in May than forecast as a growing economy helped bring in more tax revenue, Treasury Department statistics showed. The excess of spending over revenue fell to 135.9 billion last month from a shortfall of 189.7 billion in May 2009, according to a report issued today in Washington.

• Friday, June 11th 2010 - 23:20 UTC

  Argentine industrial activity soared 13.1% in May and 11.8% in first four months

  

  According to the Argentine Industrial Union, the manufacturing sector grew 13.1% in April in comparison with the same month of 2009, with the automotive and the iron and steel industries as key pillars.

• Friday, June 11th 2010 - 23:10 UTC

  Spanish group Viajes Marsans (former owners of Aerolineas Argentinas) sold

  

  Spanish travel company Viajes Marsans S.A., the parent company of bankrupt airline Air Comet, has been sold to Posibilitum Business for 600 million euros (720 million USD), the parties to the deal said this week.

• Friday, June 11th 2010 - 20:55 UTC

  Positive outlook for the Argentine economy according to international bank

  

  Argentine stocks are poised to a boost from a likely decline in the nation’s credit risk by year-end and the presidential elections in 2011, according to analysts from Spain’s Banco Santander, one of the leading financial institutions in Latinamerica.

• Friday, June 11th 2010 - 20:53 UTC

  Piñera announces huge investments in the state-run copper industry

  

  Chilean President Sebastián Piñera has announced plans to invest 15 billion US dollars in Codelco, the state-owned copper company. Speaking to an audience of workers, managers and executives at a mine in Calama earlier this week, Piñera said the investment would bring about “a renaissance and a new youth to Codelco”.

• Friday, June 11th 2010 - 20:50 UTC

  Japan in “risk of collapse” under huge debt mountain says new PM

  

  Japan is at “risk of collapse” under its huge debt mountain, the country's new prime minister has said. Naoto Kan, in his first major speech since taking over, said Japan needed a financial restructuring to avert a Greece-style crisis.

• Friday, June 11th 2010 - 06:31 UTC

  FIFA declares profit of 196 million USD and over 1 billion equity

  

  FIFA made a profit of 196 million US dollars in 2009 and has equity of over 1 billion thanks mainly to massive and still growing income from the sale of TV rights, soccer's governing body said on Thursday.

• Friday, June 11th 2010 - 06:21 UTC

  World Cup in South Africa Bypassed ‘Plan B’

  

  The following piece was written by Pravin Gordhan, South African Minister of Finance and published in Bloomberg Business Week.<br />
  The 2010 World Cup soccer tournament that kicks off Friday represents much more than just a sporting spectacular for South Africa.

• Friday, June 11th 2010 - 06:03 UTC

  Euro-zone rates unchanged; strong ECB support for budget austerity measures

  

  The European Central Bank kept interest rates in the Euro zone at 1% on Thursday as expected. June was the thirteenths month running that rates have been left on hold. ECB also supported the recent budget deficit cuts announced by several EU countries.

• Friday, June 11th 2010 - 06:00 UTC

  Finland is the first Euro-zone economy to re-enter recession

  

  Finland's economy slipped back into recession during the first three months of 2010, official figures have shown. During the January to March quarter, its economy contracted by a seasonally-adjusted 0.4%, after a decline of 0.2% in October to December of last year.