Economy

• Wednesday, August 11th 2010 - 06:21 UTC

  Japan leaves benchmark rate on hold; fears Chinese slowdown

  

  Japan's central bank has kept its benchmark interest rate unchanged as it tries to nurture the country's slow recovery from recession while also attempting to tackle deflation. Rates have been held at 0.1% since the end of 2008.

• Wednesday, August 11th 2010 - 06:19 UTC

  Fed admits modest US recovery and will buy long term government debt

  

  The US Federal Reserve announced Tuesday steps to boost economic recovery and will be using proceeds from its investments in mortgage securities to buy longer-term government debt. The Fed also kept interest rates unchanged at between zero and 0.25%.

• Wednesday, August 11th 2010 - 06:07 UTC

  Two leading Brazilian banks join to expand operations in Africa

  

  Two leading Brazilian banks have agreed to acquire stakes in BES Africa, a holding company belonging to Portugal’s biggest publicly traded bank that makes investments in Africa.

• Wednesday, August 11th 2010 - 05:51 UTC

  Uruguay concerned with labour demands and fishing vessel seizures in Montevideo

  

  Alleged labour disputes involving hundreds of thousands of US dollars have left seven Spanish fishing vessels legally stranded in Montevideo, threatening the reputation of Uruguay’s main port to continue as a South Atlantic fisheries hub.

• Tuesday, August 10th 2010 - 14:19 UTC

  Since last year Chilean women are a majority in higher education and increasing

  

  Last year was the first time that a majority – 51% - of all higher education students in Chile were women, the Education Ministry reported last week.

• Tuesday, August 10th 2010 - 11:51 UTC

  Basic Foods’ Basket in Argentina increased 35.9% in twelve months

  

  The Basic Foods Basket, CBA, an index from Argentina’s Foundation for Latin American Economic Research (FIEL) increased 0.6% in July compared to the previous month, 21% in the first seven months of the year, and 35.9% over a year ago.

• Tuesday, August 10th 2010 - 11:39 UTC

  Chilean economy recovering strongly shows Central bank data

  

  Chile’s Central Bank released the Economic Activity Index (IMACEC) results for June on Sunday showing an increase in economic activity of 6.8%, over June 2009. The results showed an increase in activity across the board — from the transportation and electric industries, to gas and water.

• Tuesday, August 10th 2010 - 01:30 UTC

  Argentina confident it can issue debt in US dollars below 9% interest rate

  

  Argentine Economy Minister Amado Boudou confirmed what newspaper Ámbito Financiero had anticipated a week ago: the plan is to issue debt in US dollars but below the 9% mark, which with the current panorama may allow for an even lower percentage index.

• Monday, August 9th 2010 - 07:46 UTC

  Argentina's warning to would-be Euro deserters

  

  The tensions between the eurozone's north and south, and the complex and politically costly transfers of money required to dampen the euro crisis, have led many people to think the unthinkable: saving Europe's common currency may require that some countries abandon it.

• Monday, August 9th 2010 - 07:36 UTC

  To spend or not to spend: Is that the main question?

  

  The debate over fiscal policy has reached a fork in the road. One way leads to maintaining or increasing the fiscal stimulus. This column argues that policymakers should take the other path. This would mean phasing out government expenditure while phasing in social protection programmes at the risk of a double-dip recession but potentially resulting in a more vibrant economy.