Economy

• Friday, August 10th 2018 - 06:51 UTC

  Brazil and Argentina markets hit by domestic and overseas uncertainties

  

  Major Latin American currencies fell against the dollar on Thursday as global trade tensions strengthened the greenback and political uncertainty in Brazil and Argentina. Latin America's largest economy heads into a presidential election in two months time and in Argentina a major corruption scandal is unfolding.

• Thursday, August 9th 2018 - 20:33 UTC

  Brazil's auto exports tumble 21% in July over June: fingers point to Argentina weakness

  

  Brazil's auto exports tumbled 21% in July from a month ago, the country's automakers' association said on Tuesday, blaming a monetary crisis in neighboring Argentina for the shortfall and adding that it expects exports to be steady for the year, not higher as it had predicted before last month.

• Thursday, August 9th 2018 - 13:54 UTC

  Brazilian inflation in July slowing down

  

  Inflation in Brazil slowed for the first time in two months in July as the impact of a May nationwide truckers' strike dimmed, reinforcing the view that a recent price spike would not last long.

• Thursday, August 9th 2018 - 08:40 UTC

  Venezuela oil exports avoid seizures with tankers' transfers at sea and operating from Cuba

  

  Venezuela’s state-run oil company PDVSA has limited the damage from an unprecedented slump in crude exports by transferring oil between tankers at sea and loading vessels in neighboring Cuba to avoid asset seizures. But Venezuela is still fulfilling less than 60% of its obligations under supply deals with customers.

• Thursday, August 9th 2018 - 08:15 UTC

  Cuban private farmers given more incentives to increase production

  

  Cuba said this week it was doubling the amount of land it granted would-be farmers and the lengths of their leases in an effort to increase stagnating agricultural output. The state owns 80% of the land and leases most of that to farmers and cooperatives. The remainder is owned by some 400,000 private family farmers and their cooperatives.

• Thursday, August 9th 2018 - 08:10 UTC

  Chile doubles lithium carbonate exports: strong demand and prices

  

  Chile’s exports of lithium carbonate reached US$ 85 million in July, more than double that of the same month the previous year, as demand and prices for the key component in electric vehicle batteries continues to rise, the central bank said in a release.

• Thursday, August 9th 2018 - 07:13 UTC

  Parana River low water level increasing freight costs for cereal transport

  

  Large grain transport ships using Argentine’s port hub of Rosario have had to reduce their cargo by between 3,200 and 4,300 tons because of an unusually low water level in the Parana River, the Rosario grains exchange said this week.

• Thursday, August 9th 2018 - 07:02 UTC

  Argentina expecting a bumper 2018/19 wheat crop of some 20m tons

  

  Argentine farmers are finishing this year's wheat sowing, helped by moist soils and cold weather that is prolonging the vegetative stage of crops, raising hopes of high yields and a record harvest, growers and analysts said on Wednesday. Cold Southern Hemisphere winter weather allows seedlings to grow more sprigs per plant. Harvesting starts in November.

• Thursday, August 9th 2018 - 06:38 UTC

  Pound falls below US$ 1.29 for the first time in almost a year

  

  The pound has fallen below US$1.29 for the first time in almost a year on continuing worries Britain will leave the EU without a trade deal. Sterling also hit a nine-month low against the euro, and was down against the yen and Swiss franc.

• Wednesday, August 8th 2018 - 09:50 UTC

  UK farmers call to make food security a priority for a post Brexit scenario

  

  British farmers have called on the government to make food security a top priority on the day the country’s cupboards would run bare if households relied only on British produce. A long-term decline in self-sufficiency that has stagnated at around 60% in recent years means around three quarters of the shortfall is imported from the rest of the European Union.