Economy

• Wednesday, January 7th 2009 - 20:00 UTC

  Obama takes off with 1,2 trillion budget deficit, 8.3% of GDP

  The sharp slowdown in the US economy will push the federal budget deficit to more than one trillion US dollars, the non-partisan Congressional Budget Office (CBO) announced Wednesday. The 1.186 trillion USD deficit for the fiscal year ending on 30 September would be the largest on record.

• Wednesday, January 7th 2009 - 20:00 UTC

  Uruguay, Peru, Brazil best performing economies

  Brazil's economy, Latin America's largest, will likely end 2008 with an expansion of 5.9%, according to new estimates from the United Nations Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC).

• Wednesday, January 7th 2009 - 20:00 UTC

  Accounting fraud (Enron style) rocks Indian markets

  A four-day relief rally on India's stock market ended abruptly on Wednesday after the chairman of Satyam Computer Services Ltd resigned with a confession of accounting fraud in India's biggest corporate governance scandal.
  
  Satyam's shares collapsed 78%, leading the bellwether Sensex index on the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) down 7.3%.

• Tuesday, January 6th 2009 - 20:00 UTC

  Chile's December inflation negative; twelve months, 7.1%

  Consumer inflation in Chile during December was negative, 1.2%, the lowest since 1996, helping the overall consumers' prices index (CPI) to close 2008 at 7.1%, according to the latest release from the country's Statistics Institute, INE.

• Tuesday, January 6th 2009 - 20:00 UTC

  Japan's Toyota to halt production 11 days in its 12 factories

  

  Toyota is to halt production at all 12 of its Japanese factories for 11 days in February and March as it tries to reduce its stock of unsold cars. It had already announced a three-day halt for January, but before that it had not cut production since 1993, when it did so for one day.

• Tuesday, January 6th 2009 - 20:00 UTC

  With inflation under control, Euro rates cut forecasted

  The Euro has slipped against the pound and the dollar as expectations rise that the European Central Bank will cut interest rates again on 15 January.

• Tuesday, January 6th 2009 - 20:00 UTC

  Uruguay 2008 exports grow 31% in value, reach 6 billion USD

  

  Uruguay exports grew by 31.3% in value in 2008, its biggest increase in the last four years, despite the negative effects that the international financial crisis had on the country in the last two months of the year, according to an official report.

• Tuesday, January 6th 2009 - 20:00 UTC

  Chile massive stimulus plan has full political support

  

  Chile announced a stimulus plan increasing spending by four billion US dollars in an effort to create jobs and prop the economy. This means that for the first time in six years Chile will run a budget deficit, 2.9% of GDP.

• Tuesday, January 6th 2009 - 20:00 UTC

  Chavez promises low oil prices will not stop the revolution

  Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez forecasted that the “unity” of the world's big producers of crude will restore stability to global petroleum markets and anticipated that even if the price of Venezuelan oil falls to zero, “the Bolivarian revolution will continue”.

• Tuesday, January 6th 2009 - 20:00 UTC

  Five Brazilian banks concentrate 65% of financial assets

  

  The share of total assets held by Brazil's five largest banks rose to 65.72% at the close of 2008, up more than 13 percentage points from the end of the previous year, according to Central bank figures quoted by financial and business daily Valor.