Economy

• Thursday, July 1st 2010 - 21:10 UTC

  Construction slump in Punta Arenas lifts unemployment to 6%

  

  Unemployment in the extreme south of Chile, Magallanes Region, increased for the second mobile quarter running and now stands at 6% with construction industry receiving the heaviest blow, according to the latest release from the regional Statistics Office, INE.

• Thursday, July 1st 2010 - 07:22 UTC

  Latinamerica, one of the very few benefiting from Spain’s EU presidency

  

  Spain's ambitious six-month presidency of the EU was eclipsed by the European debt crisis which thrust the country's fragile economy into the global spotlight and weakened the Spanish government, analysts said.

• Thursday, July 1st 2010 - 07:03 UTC

  Japanese group secures iron-ore supply with stake in Brazilian steel foundry

  

  Usinas Siderurgicas de Minas Gerais SA, Brazil’s second-largest steelmaker, agreed to sell a stake in its mining and railroad businesses to Sumitomo Corp. for 1.93 billion US dollars before a possible share offering in the unit.

• Thursday, July 1st 2010 - 06:52 UTC

  Chilean wine retailer to promote sales in Peru, Brazil and Colombia

  

  Three months after opening its newest store in Chile, The World of Wines - a key Chilean wine retailer – is looking to expand throughout the region.

• Wednesday, June 30th 2010 - 06:00 UTC

  China and South America crucial for globalized General Motors recovery

  

  General Motors CEO Ed Whitacre Jr. told analysts Tuesday that the automaker has changed since bankruptcy from a “shell-shocked” and “overly complicated company” to a sharply focused one that has a clearer sense of its global strengths and a passion to win back customers in the United States.

• Wednesday, June 30th 2010 - 05:50 UTC

  US dollar should be replaced by a more stable system, says UN report

  

  The US dollar is an unreliable international currency and should be replaced by a more stable system, the United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs said in a report released Tuesday.

• Wednesday, June 30th 2010 - 05:21 UTC

  Brazil largest meat processor JBS targeting US top pork producer

  

  Shares of Smithfield Foods Inc., the top U.S. pork producer, jumped as much as 8.3% Tuesday on speculation the company may be a takeover target for Brazil-based meat processor JBS S.A. A report in the Brazilian publication Valor Economico, citing market sources said JBS may seek discussions over an acquisition with Smithfield.

• Wednesday, June 30th 2010 - 05:14 UTC

  Caterpillar expanding plant in Brazil to meet growing Latam demand

  

  US corporation Caterpillar Inc. said Tuesday it will build a new manufacturing facility in Brazil to meet growing customer demand there and across Latin America.

• Wednesday, June 30th 2010 - 05:10 UTC

  BIS recommends slashing budget deficits and rising borrowing costs

  

  Governments must slash budget deficits decisively and central banks should not wait too long to raise borrowing costs as side effects from measures prescribed to tackle the global recession may create the next crisis according to the Bank for International Settlements.

• Tuesday, June 29th 2010 - 05:40 UTC

  Boosted by agriculture Paraguay set to expand 6% in 2010

  

  Paraguay expects an annual growth of 5% by the end of President Fernando Lugo’s administration which finishes in 2013 and inflation should not be higher than one digit said Economy Minister Dionisio Borda.