Economy

• Wednesday, December 19th 2012 - 20:45 UTC

  Chevron/YPF sign pilot accord to drill 100 wells in Vaca Muerta shale deposits

  

  US Chevron and Argentina’s nationalized YPF signed a partnership to on Wednesday to invest 1 billion dollars to develop the shale-oil reserves of Vaca Muerta in the hydrocarbons rich Patagonian province of Neuquén.

• Wednesday, December 19th 2012 - 20:37 UTC

  Falklands owned new wind farm to supply Mount Pleasant Complex

  

  The Falkland Islands Government Chief Executive, Keith Padgett, Commander British Forces, Brigadier Bill Aldridge and Paul Wilson from the Defence Infrastructure Organisation have signed a Memorandum Of Understanding (MOU) for the construction of a new wind farm at Mare Harbour.

• Wednesday, December 19th 2012 - 20:25 UTC

  UBS fined in US, UK and Switzerland for manipulating the Libor rate

  

  Swiss banking giant UBS has agreed to pay 1.5bn dollars to US, UK and Swiss regulators for attempting to manipulate the Libor inter-bank lending rate. It becomes the second major bank to be fined over Libor after Barclays was ordered to pay 450m to UK and US authorities in the summer.

• Wednesday, December 19th 2012 - 19:48 UTC

  Major operation dismantles Euro and dollar counterfeit banknote printing in Peru

  

  A combined operation involving police forces from Peru, Spain, US Secret Service and Europol dismantled on Wednesday a counterfeit banknote print shop in Lima and arrested one suspect.

• Wednesday, December 19th 2012 - 19:34 UTC

  State of the art dairy farm in Uruguay with 8.000 milking cows and self generating power

  

  A state of the art dairy farm with 8.000 milking cows that will export powder milk, create 300 qualified jobs and generate its own energy from the animals’ dung is scheduled to open its first phase next April in Durazno, Uruguay.

• Wednesday, December 19th 2012 - 06:50 UTC

  Brazil wants closer links with Mexico; Rousseff plans to travel next March

  

  Brazilian president Dilma Rousseff is planning to visit Mexico in early 2013 taking advantage of the good chemistry with the new leader Enrique Peña Nieto, and with the purpose of re-launching the deteriorated relations between the two main economies of Latinamerica.

• Wednesday, December 19th 2012 - 01:59 UTC

  Brazil loosening capital controls imposed in the past two years to prop the Real

  

  The Brazilian central bank reduced reserve requirements on short dollar positions held by local banks as it steps up efforts to buoy the Real, the worst performing major currency this year.

• Wednesday, December 19th 2012 - 01:38 UTC

  Saudi Arabia joins Japan and China, suspends imports of Brazilian beef

  

  Saudi Arabia has suspended imports of Brazilian beef, Brazil’s agriculture ministry said Tuesday, and became the largest country to stop purchases after confirmation of a 2010 case of atypical mad cow disease.

• Wednesday, December 19th 2012 - 01:33 UTC

  Schmallenberg disease hitting lambs and calves spreads to all England and Wales

  

  A disease that can lead to lambs and calves being stillborn or deformed has spread to every county in England and Wales. Some farmers are expected to lose livestock during the lambing season, which is just getting underway.

• Tuesday, December 18th 2012 - 05:34 UTC

  Santander keeps growing: absorbs Banesto and Banif and will close 700 branches

  

  Banking giant Santander said on Monday that it will absorb two of its Spanish offshoots, closing 700 branches in the latest stage of Spain's great banking shake-up. The biggest bank in the Euro zone by market value, said it could save 520 million Euros a year by absorbing the offshoots, Banesto and Banif.