The recession-blighted United Kingdom economy shrank at its fastest rate for more than 50 years in the first three months of 2009, official figures have shown. And revisions to figures revealed the current recession began earlier than first thought, with a 0.1% decline seen between April and June last year compared with previous estimates of zero growth.
The Brazilian Central Bank announced it had reached an initial understanding with China for the gradual elimination of the US dollar in bilateral trade operations which in 2009 are estimated to reach 40 billion US dollars.
Falkland Islands Treasury officials painted a bleak and arguably inevitable picture of tough times ahead at last week’s public meeting on the recently announced Budget.
President Fernando Lugo reiterated Friday that Paraguay did not yield and will not yield “energy sovereignty” claims for power generated from South America’s largest hydroelectric dam Itaipu which it shares with neighbouring Brazil.
The Director General of the World Organization for Animal Health, OIE, Bernard Vallat called Friday on developed countries free of foot and mouth disease FMD, to help developing countries eradicate the disease.
China's central bank has reiterated its call for a new reserve currency to replace the US dollar. The report from the People's Bank of China (PBOC) said a super-sovereign currency should take its place.
The Spanish cabinet approved Friday a 9 billion Euro (12.7 billion US dollars) fund to help revive the financial sector by buying stakes in banks hit by the global crisis and get them lending again.
Leaders from the grouping which supports Uruguayan presidential hopeful Danilo Astori cautioned in Buenos Aires that if Senator Jose Mujica is nominated candidate next Sunday, the ruling coalition’s re-election chances could be impaired.
Safe deposit boxes in Uruguay are overflowing with US dollars from fearful Argentines concerned about the situation in their country and the results of Sunday’s mid term elections, according to banking sources in Montevideo.
Argentine industrial production fell 1.7% in May from a year earlier and was down 0.2% on the month, according to the latest release from the country’s Statistics Institute. This is the fifth month running that industrial production has been contracting.