
The World Trade Organization has agreed its first ever global deal aimed at boosting commerce. The agreement reached in Bali, Indonesia, simplifies trade procedures and also makes it easier for the poorest countries to sell their goods.

Global equity markets surged and the dollar rose against the Yen after stronger-than-expected US jobs data gave investors confidence the economy is strong enough to withstand an expected reduction in Federal Reserve stimulus.

Argentina will from next week open the doors for Brazilian imports held up on the border between the two nations, including footwear and motor vehicles, according to Brazilian Minister of Development, Industry and Foreign Trade Fernando Pimentel.

The US government has asked the US Supreme Court to intervene over a hedge fund's effort to gain information about Argentina's non-US assets as part of an ongoing litigation, which is rapidly becoming a lead case regarding sovereign assets and sovereign debts rescheduling.

Brazil's annual inflation cooled in November falling to 5.77%, reported the Institute of Geography and Statistics, IBGE, on Friday. The November reading was the lowest since registering 5.84% in December 2012.

The Bank of England held interest rates at a record low once more this week in spite of mounting optimism over the UK recovery. A flurry of encouraging signs on the UK economy has fuelled expectations for growth to pick up to around 1% this quarter.

The European Commission president Jose Manuel Barroso called on Mercosur to decide whether it wishes to advance in trade talks with the European Union jointly, as a block, and suggested the idea of a 'two-speed negotiation', since it is clear that Brazil is interested in advancing and wants to reach an agreement.

Brazil's central bank said its current pace of interest rate increases remains appropriate to rein in consumer prices, repeating language it used to justify previous half-percentage-point increases, according to the November 26/27 minutes released on Thursday.

Consumer prices in Uruguay during November increased 0.2% over the previous month with annual inflation reaching 8.51% compared to the 8.67% of October. Nevertheless in the eleven months of 2013, consumer prices have climbed 9.31%, which is a whole percentage point higher than the same period a year ago, according to the latest release from the country's Stats Office, INE.

United States praised Argentina for its latest commitment to the payment of a debt worth more than 600 million dollars to five companies in exchange for the ending of legal action. The message was transmitted by the US most senior representative in Argentina Kevin Sullivan, in a brief encounter with cabinet chief Jorge Capitanich, according to reports in Ambito Financiero.