Economy

Friday, May 6th 2011 - 17:29 UTC
Brazil’s inflation peaks in April, but prices should begin slowing down in May

Brazil’s benchmark consumer price index in April exceeded the upper limit of the government’s target range for the first time since 2005 but officials are confident April was a peak and during May the tendency is for inflation to decelerate.
Friday, May 6th 2011 - 17:28 UTC
EU farmers insist with the “catastrophic impact” of trade agreement with Mercosur

European farm leaders have left Members of the European Parliament in no doubt about the ‘catastrophic impact’ on EU agriculture of a trade agreement with Mercosur, reports the Friday edition of the UK’s Farmers Guardian.
Friday, May 6th 2011 - 17:26 UTC
Brazilian automobile industry, still strong, begins to feel the tight money pinch

Automobile production in Brazil fell 4.9% and sales dropped 5.5% in April from March, the national automakers' association said on Friday.
Friday, May 6th 2011 - 17:24 UTC
Top US grain processors join the ‘bio-fuel refineries rush’ in Brazil

Cargill Inc and the world’s largest grain processor Archer-Daniels-Midland Co, are planning to invest about 560 million US dollars in new bio-fuel refineries in Brazil.
Friday, May 6th 2011 - 17:21 UTC
US payrolls expanded in April, but jobless rate climbed to 9%

United States employers in April added more jobs than forecast. Payrolls expanded by 244,000 last month, the biggest gain since May 2010, after a revised 221,000 increase the prior month, the Labour Department said Friday in Washington.
Friday, May 6th 2011 - 00:10 UTC
Uruguayan inflation eases in April but still is almost double the annual target

Uruguay’s April consumer inflation, 0.34%, the lowest since last November came as a relief for government authorities, but the accumulated rate of the last twelve months was 8.34%, well above the Central bank 4% to 6% target. Furthermore compared to April 2010 inflation was almost double: 0.18% vs 0.34%, according to the country’s Statistics Institute, INE.
Friday, May 6th 2011 - 00:03 UTC
Commodity prices fall for the fourth day running; oil below 100 USD per barrel

Commodity prices fell on Thursday for a fourth day, following weak economic news from Europe and the US. Oil prices were down 10% at one stage, with US light, sweet crude ending the day below 100 US dollars a barrel.
Thursday, May 5th 2011 - 23:51 UTC
Spain loses 12-year battle: Argentina can use La Rioja denomination for its wines

Spain has lost its 12-year battle with Argentina over the use of the name La Rioja. The northwestern Argentine province of La Rioja was founded by a Spaniard in 1591; the Spanish were also responsible for introducing vines to the region, reports Decanter.com.
Thursday, May 5th 2011 - 16:37 UTC
FAO April food prices index stable but still 36% higher than in 2010

Food prices remained virtually steady in April after falling in March following eight months of successive increases, FAO announced Thursday.
Thursday, May 5th 2011 - 01:46 UTC
Brazilian corporation becomes ‘orange juice king’ of the world

Citrovita and Citrosuco of Brazil won European Union antitrust approval for their merger plan to form the world’s largest wholesale supplier of orange juice.