Argentina's National Institute of Statistics and Census (Indec) released Thursday a report mentioning that supermarket sales fell 17.8% yoy in October as consumption continues to fall. Sales in shopping malls and wholesalers also dropped.
After concluding the fourth review of the Policy Coordination Instrument (PCI) with Paraguay as well as the second one on the Resilience and Sustainability Facility (SRS), the International Monetary Fund (IMF) approved a disbursement of US$186.28 million in Special Drawing Rights (SDRs) representing nearly US$ 245 million to help the South American country's green energy matrix expansion.
Argentina has been cleared to start poultry, pork, beef cuts on the bone, and gibblets to the Philippines through an agreement also contemplating reciprocity between the two countries' control and certification systems, which will speed future approvals, it was announced in Buenos Aires.
It was more than rumors that Japanese automotive giants Nissan and Honda were eyeing a merger by 2026 which would revolutionize the industry with the appearance of what in Reuters' view would be the third-largest auto group worldwide. The two companies signed a memorandum of understanding whereby discussions about integration via a joint holding company would go on during 2025, it was announced. Earlier this month, Nissan's CEO Makoto Uchida admitted that the company's situation was “severe.”
US President-elect Donald Trump announced Sunday he had chosen former Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) Mauricio Claver-Carone as his future State Department's Envoy to Latin America. The Cuban-born Claver-Carone was appointed to the IDB at Trump's request in 2020 but was dismissed amid an affair with a subordinate whom he had given a pay raise.
A report released Friday by Argentina's National Institute of Statistics and Census (Indec) showed that the country's economic activity fell by 0.7% in October for an accumulated 2.7% interannual contraction in the first ten months of 2024, driven particularly by fishing (-49.9%) and construction (-14.5%) amid President Javier Milei's austerity plans which included halting all public works.
Brazil's Central Bank (BCB) successfully maneuvered Thursday and got the US dollar to fall against the local real after volatility gripped financial markets amid President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva's planned taxation reforms, Agencia Brasil reported. The US currency closed at R$ 6.12 following Congressional approval of the Government's legal package.
The Bank of England on Thursday left interest rates unchanged at 4.75%, despite an inflation rate that reached an eight-month high, pushed by services and wage increases. However three members of the Bank’s Monetary Policy Committee voted for a rate reduction, while six insisted in keeping them on hold.
International Monetary Fund (IMF) Spokeswoman Julie Kozack admitted Thursday that talks are underway to grant Argentina a new loan. The South American country is reportedly eligible for such a disbursement given the impressive achievements of President Javier Milei's chainsaw adjustment policies. The program currently in force ends this year and Argentina still owes around US$ 1 billion.
Unemployment in Uruguay fell to 7.2% of the Economically Active Population (EAP) last month, which represented a slight improvement from October’s 7.3%, according to the latest report from Montevideo's National Statistics Institute (INE) this week. It was the lowest figure since December 2021.