Economy

• Wednesday, January 8th 2014 - 05:34 UTC

  When talking fuel, Mexico and Argentina the better off; Colombia and Uruguay bottom of the list

  

  Taking as reference the ratio between the average salary and the price of gasoline in six Latam countries, Mexican and Argentine consumers are the better off when it comes to filling up the tank while for Uruguay and Colombia the ratio is the least favorable.

• Wednesday, January 8th 2014 - 05:28 UTC

  Record car sale in Argentina in 2013, but 2014 is full of uncertainties because of new taxes

  

  The registry of new cars in Argentina soared 13.5% last year establishing a record of 955.203 vehicles, compared to 2012, and also above the 860.000 units of 2011, which was the standing record, according to the Argentine association of automobile dealers, ACARA.

• Wednesday, January 8th 2014 - 05:00 UTC

  US dollar climbs to new record in Argentina: 10.90 Pesos

  

  The newly appointed Argentine Central bank chairman Juan Carlos Fábrega strategy to make the money exchange markets converge does not seem to be working: on Tuesday the 'blue' or parallel dollar soared to a new record, 10.85 and 10.90 Pesos, while the gap with the official rate again climbed to almost 60%.

• Tuesday, January 7th 2014 - 23:28 UTC

  JP Morgan will pay 1.7bn dollars penalty related to Bernard Madoff's fraud

  

  JPMorgan Chase & Co will pay a 1.7 billion dollars penalty to settle charges by US federal authorities that the bank failed to report suspicious activity relating to Bernard Madoff's Ponzi scheme.

• Tuesday, January 7th 2014 - 06:09 UTC

  Main threat to world economy in 2014 is not the Euro-zone but China, says Soros

  

  George Soros says stop worrying about the Euro-zone and look at the slower growth in China. The hedge fund boss, who built his fortune betting on the world’s money markets, is concerned that twenty years of rapid growth is about to run out of steam.

• Tuesday, January 7th 2014 - 06:05 UTC

  For second year running Uruguay manages deflation in December, keeps inflation in one digit

  

  Uruguay again managed a December with deflation, (as happened exactly a year ago) with the consumer prices index down 0.72%, helping to bring 2013 inflation to 8.52%, according to the official stats office, INE. This is the sixth year in the last ten that Uruguay despite an unprecedented decade long growth-boom and abundant revenue overshoots its inflation target.

• Tuesday, January 7th 2014 - 05:58 UTC

  Yellen confirmed as next Federal Reserve chairperson: Senate votes 56-26

  

  Janet Yellen, a key force behind the Federal Reserve's unprecedented and controversial efforts to boost the US economy, was confirmed on Monday by the Senate to lead the central bank just as it begins to unwind that stimulus.

• Monday, January 6th 2014 - 19:42 UTC

  Uruguayan minister says trade relations with Argentina “will never be the same”

  

  Industry, Energy and Mining Minister, Roberto Kreimerman, said Uruguay would try to settle disputes with Argentina in order to reestablish trade relations, but he also recognized Uruguay’s relationship with Argentina 'will never be the same'. The minister revealed that 32 million dollars of Uruguayan exports are blocked at Argentine Customs.

• Sunday, January 5th 2014 - 13:07 UTC

  Falklands looks to South America and Scotland to service its oil industry development

  

  Successful trade missions to Uruguay and Chile and the growing support and know-how links with Scotland for the development of the Falkland Islands oil and gas industry were mentioned as some of the 2013 highlights by Roger Spink, president of the Falklands Chamber of Commerce in his Christmas speech.

• Saturday, January 4th 2014 - 04:38 UTC

  Mantega releases crucial data to calm market anxiety about Brazil's accounts

  

  Brazil's Finance Minister Guido Mantega insisted on Friday that the government is keeping spending under control as he sought to calm anxiety about the deterioration of the government's accounts. The minister said the primary budget surplus, (excess of revenue over expenditure before debt payments) would be above the goal of 73 billion Brazilian Reais for 2013 (30.5bn dollars), equivalent to about 1.5% of gross domestic product.