Economy

• Saturday, April 30th 2011 - 09:48 UTC

  To help contain inflation, China allows appreciation of the Yuan

  

  China's currency, the Yuan, strengthened past a key level against the US dollar on Friday, as part of wider efforts to contain inflation on the mainland. The Yuan broke past 6.50 against the dollar, a level not seen since 1993.

• Friday, April 29th 2011 - 23:23 UTC

  World Cup, Olympics, excellent opportunity to promote the Brazil brand

  

  Rio de Janeiro's hosting of the 2014 World Cup and the 2016 Olympics is an unprecedented chance to promote the Brazil brand and ensure a legacy of economic and social benefits, former British Prime Minister Tony Blair said on Friday.

• Friday, April 29th 2011 - 22:07 UTC

  Brazil, Venezuela, Argentina among top users of social network Twitter

  

  Three Latin American countries figure among the ten top users of social network Tiwtter according to a release from comScore, Inc., a leader in measuring the digital world, based on the comScore Media Metris service.

• Friday, April 29th 2011 - 21:50 UTC

  Argentina’s construction activity up 4% in March in spite of eight holidays

  

  Argentina's construction activity was up 4% in March from the same month a year ago, the smallest increase in at least 15 months. In comparison, construction activity in March 2010 was up 12.8% on the year.

• Friday, April 29th 2011 - 21:40 UTC

  Spain hits new unemployment record; crackdown on the black economy

  

  Weak jobs data, sliding retail sales and rising inflation confirm Spain’s economic recovery is faltering. The official figures released Friday showed 21.3% of the workforce without a job, up from 20.3% at the end of last year.

• Friday, April 29th 2011 - 21:37 UTC

  US economy still slow says Fed; polls show Americans gloomy but optimistic

  

  The US economy is not fully recovered from its deep recession, with housing still weighing on growth, Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke said on Friday in a speech spelling out ways the US central bank has studied lower income communities.

• Friday, April 29th 2011 - 05:51 UTC

  US growth in first quarter much slower than anticipated

  

  US economic growth slowed in the first three months of 2011 to an annualised rate of 1.8%, corresponding to a 0.4% quarterly increase. This compares with a revised annual growth rate of 3.1% in the previous quarter, official figures show.

• Friday, April 29th 2011 - 05:40 UTC

  Brazilian exporters demanding a “weaker” Real to regain competitive edge

  

  The strength of the Brazilian Real against the US dollar is “very worrying” for the country's exporters, with many companies struggling with higher production costs and a reduced ability to compete in global markets, Bunge Brasil CEO Pedro Parente said Thursday.

• Friday, April 29th 2011 - 05:37 UTC

  High interest rates in Brazil for a long period, anticipates central bank

  

  The Brazilian central bank said it will raise interest rates at a slower pace for a longer period than initially planned as the country’s inflation outlook worsens, according to the minutes of its April 19-20 meeting.

• Friday, April 29th 2011 - 05:21 UTC

  Oil soars to its highest in 31 months and US dollar plunges to three year low

  

  United States crude oil futures rose Thursday to hit a 31-month high settlement after a volatile trading session while the US dollar fell to a three-year low against major currencies following on the Federal Reserve's intention to keep interest rates near zero.