
After getting out of its most severe recession in history in 2017, Brazil remains in a state of economic malaise, notching up a mere 1% of growth last year, with public debt forecast to snowball from 77% of GDP to 140% by 2030, according to the World Bank.

US Vice President Mike Pence warned Central American nations to be cautious when building relations with China, which has been increasingly active in the region. Amid mounting tensions between the United States and China, Pence brought up ties with Beijing as he met in Washington with leaders of El Salvador, Guatemala and Honduras as well as Mexico's foreign secretary.

Paul Allen, who co-founded Microsoft, has died aged 65 from complications of non-Hodgkin's lymphoma. He had revealed the disease's return only two weeks ago, after previously being treated for it in 2009. Allen had said he and his doctors were optimistic about treatment.

Bolivia's Central Bank (BCB) Monday launched the new 50 bolivianos note (worth around 7.3 US dollars), following the recent release of the 10 and 20 bills.

United Kingdom can expect low economic growth for the next three years, while a no-deal Brexit could dent growth even further, says a forecasting body. The EY Item Club predicted GDP growth of 1.3% this year and 1.5% in 2019, down from 1.4% and 1.6% respectively in its previous outlook three months ago.

The £50 note will not be scrapped and will instead get a plastic redesign, the Bank of England has said. Fears that the largest denomination was widely used by criminals and rarely for ordinary purchases had prompted a proposal to abolish it. But ministers said the new version, to be printed in the UK, would be more durable, secure and harder to forge.

Chile's Finance Minister Felipe Larraín justified the seventh increase in as many weeks in the price of petrol because the Fuel Price Stabilization Mechanism (Mepco) has subsidized 50 million dollars so far this year.

Chile has called for lithium to be traded on the London Metals Exchange to provide greater “clarity” about its value, mining minister Baldo Prokurica said. At present, lithium producers negotiate contracts with buyers but the terms of the deals are not made public. Critics say this lack of clarity has a chilling effect on potential new investment in the market since the metal’s value cannot be precisely measured.

Wall Street indexes continued their slide in Thursday’s volatile session as investors worried about rising interest rates and braced for a trade war hit to corporate earnings a day ahead of the quarterly reporting season kickoff.

Frost and a lack of rain could scale back Argentina's wheat crop for the 2018-19 season, which is currently seen at a record 19.7 million tons, the Buenos Aires Grains Exchange said on Thursday.