Economy

• Wednesday, August 19th 2020 - 09:54 UTC

  Latam lost US$ 890 million in the second quarter and has laid off 30% of its pre-pandemic workforce

  

  LATAM Airlines, South America's largest carrier, on Tuesday said it had laid off 12,600 employees since March - or almost 30% of its pre-coronavirus workforce - due to the pandemic that has upended the global travel industry. The company also reported a net loss of US$ 890 million for the second quarter.

• Wednesday, August 19th 2020 - 09:40 UTC

  Chile's GDP plunged 14,1% in the second quarter; mining the only positive sector

  

  Chile's gross domestic product (GDP) plunged 14.1% in the second quarter, the Central Bank said on Tuesday, after the coronavirus pandemic mauled economic activity with the exception of the vital mining sector. Among the worst-hit sectors were manufacturing, construction and the hotel and restaurant sector. In the first quarter, the Chilean GDP had increased slightly by 0.2%.

• Wednesday, August 19th 2020 - 09:19 UTC

  Despite rumors, Brazilian economy minister has no intention of resigning

  

  Brazil’s Economy Minister Paulo Guedes has no intention of resigning according to reports in the Sao Paulo media, in an attempt to quash rising speculation that political pressure for more public spending could force him to quit.

• Wednesday, August 19th 2020 - 08:46 UTC

  Citigroup with a record clerical error of US$ 900 million; a beneficiary refuses to hand back US$ 175 million

  

  Citigroup asked a US judge on Tuesday to freeze funds it mistakenly sent Revlon Inc creditors amid a lawsuit over one of the largest clerical errors by a bank in years. Last week, Citi repaid a nearly US$900 million loan made to Revlon, a day after lenders sued the cosmetic company over its restructuring tactics, but the repayment was made in error.

• Tuesday, August 18th 2020 - 15:50 UTC

  Falkland Islands and oil companies new approach to “stranded assets”

  

  An article in World Oil by Laura Hurst refers to the term “stranded assets” and mentions the case of the Falkland Islands oil industry: the discovery a decade ago of as much as 1,7 billion barrels of crude offshore the British Overseas Territory, and rather than the next frontier, the project to extract energy risks being added to a list of what companies call “stranded assets” that could cost them huge sums to mothball.

• Tuesday, August 18th 2020 - 09:55 UTC

  Thousands waving national flags demonstrate across Argentina to protest against government plans

  

  Thousands of demonstrators across Argentina's main cities defied social distancing rules to answer calls to protest against a government announcement last Friday to extend containment measures in the Buenos Aires region until Aug 30 and to condemn a controversial reform of the judicial branch.

• Tuesday, August 18th 2020 - 09:09 UTC

  The US pledges US$ 5bn to Colombia for rural development; Duque supports US candidate for IDB

  

  The United States and Colombia will work together to bring new investment to rural areas of the country, officials said on Monday, as Colombia's president reiterated support for the U.S. candidate to lead the Inter-American Development Bank.

• Tuesday, August 18th 2020 - 08:57 UTC

  “Stampede” at Brazil's Economy ministry, another top official resigns

  

  Brazil's Undersecretary for Macroeconomic Policy Vladimir Kuhl Teles has resigned, according to an announcement in the Official Gazette on Monday, the latest in a string of resignations from the economy ministry.

• Tuesday, August 18th 2020 - 08:52 UTC

  Peruvian economy contracts 18,06% in June year to year

  

  Peru’s economy contracted 18.06% in June versus the same period a year earlier, the government of president Martin Vizcarra said on Sunday, the fourth straight month of contraction due to the impact of the novel coronavirus pandemic.

• Tuesday, August 18th 2020 - 08:45 UTC

  Brazilian congressional leader confident the tax reform will be approved this year

  

  Brazil's lower house speaker Rodrigo Maia said on Monday he is convinced Congress will approve tax reform and that it should be done this year to avoid the debate from being influenced by the 2022 presidential election.