Economy

• Saturday, November 6th 2010 - 07:34 UTC

  Bernanke explains what the Fed did and why: deflation and stagnation fears

  

  Following the latest decision from the Fed to pump more money into the US economy which triggered a barrage of criticisms from overseas, chairman Ben Bernanke in a column published in The Washington Post explains what it did an why.

• Friday, November 5th 2010 - 23:50 UTC

  Colombia, Chile and Peru launch integrated stock markets November 22

  

  Colombia approved Friday the integration of the Colombian stock exchange with those of Chile and Peru opening the way for the start of joint operations next November 22.

• Friday, November 5th 2010 - 22:58 UTC

  China opens beef market to Argentina; farmers warn lack of sufficient cattle

  

  China will open its market to Argentine beef consolidating the end of a conflict that started earlier this year when Beijing decided to suspend “on sanitary reasons” the import of soy-oil from Argentina, a ban that was only lifted last month.

• Friday, November 5th 2010 - 22:41 UTC

  Australia and India increase interest rates amid fears of rising inflation

  

  Australia and India have both raised interest rates by a quarter percentage point amid fears of rising inflation. The central bank of Australia put up rates from 4.5% to 4.75%, surprising markets with the first rise since May.

• Friday, November 5th 2010 - 22:38 UTC

  Argentina unemployment drops to 7.6% in third quarter from 9.1% a year ago

  

  Argentina's unemployment rate fell to 7.6% in the third quarter of this year from 9.1% percent in the same period of 2009 as the economy rebounded, President Cristina Fernandez said on Friday.

• Friday, November 5th 2010 - 02:21 UTC

  Brazil surpasses US as second-largest consumer of Chilean salmon

  

  Growing at a rate of 7 to 8% annually, Brazil's booming economy is becoming an important market for key Chilean exports.

• Friday, November 5th 2010 - 02:14 UTC

  Euro-zone keeps rate on hold and hints of further removal of emergency stimulus

  

  In a move that runs counter to the United States' Fed 600-billion-US-dollar liquidity injection to stimulate the economy the European Central Bank on Thursday kept its benchmark interest rate steady at 1%. This was the eighteenth consecutive month that ECB has frozen its main interest rate.

• Friday, November 5th 2010 - 00:51 UTC

  Bank of England leaves interest rates and liquidity resources unchanged

  

  The Bank of England held UK interest rates at a record low and decided not to pump more money into the economy via quantitative easing (QE). The Thursday decision to make no change to policy comes after recent figures on the UK economy showed good growth.

• Thursday, November 4th 2010 - 20:04 UTC

  Trichet does not believe the US is actively weakening the dollar by printing money

  

  European Central Bank President Jean-Claude Trichet said on Thursday he did not think the United States was actively trying to weaken the dollar by printing money, despite criticism from emerging economic powerhouses.

• Thursday, November 4th 2010 - 19:54 UTC

  Germany blasts latest US Fed Reserve plan to pump more money

  

  German Economy Minister Rainer Brüederle from the liberal FDP blasted the United States monetary expansive policy which is geared to prop the declining US economy with strong liquidity injections.