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MercoPress, en Español

Montevideo, August 2nd 2025 - 05:13 UTC

Economy

  • Saturday, May 5th 2018 - 07:24 UTC

    Argentina hikes benchmark rate to 40%, easing pressure on the Peso but not on inflation

    Analysts said the move suggested the Central Bank had done enough for now to stabilize the peso.

    Argentina's Central Bank on Friday hiked its benchmark interest rate to 40% to support the peso, the third such hike in just over a week and one day after the currency plunged in value. Following the decision, the peso -- which has lost more than 10% of its value in the past month -- opened 6% higher against the dollar.

  • Friday, May 4th 2018 - 09:00 UTC

    Argentine Peso tumbles 7.83% to US dollar; central bank raises rate to 33.25%

    The Peso tumbled 7.83% to 23 per U.S. dollar. It had hit 21.2 (23,5 in some banks) to the greenback on Wednesday. The central bank hiked the rate to 30.25% from 27.25% on Friday.

    Argentina’s central bank raised its benchmark interest rate by 300 basis points to 33.25% percent on Thursday, but the second steep rate increase in less than a week failed to stop the country’s peso currency from swooning to a record low. The local currency tumbled 7.83% to 23 per U.S. dollar. It had hit 21.2 to the greenback on Wednesday, the first trading day due to a holiday after the bank hiked the rate to 30.25% from 27.25% on Friday.

  • Friday, May 4th 2018 - 08:38 UTC

    Falkland Landholdings: increase in production numbers and quality

    FLH General Manager Andrew Pollard in April attended the Merino Conference in Montevideo which also included a tour of farms and technology center

    An overall increase in production numbers and quality at Falkland Landholdings was reported by General Manager Andrew Pollard at the FLH Board meeting on March 27. Mr. Pollard in early April also attended the World Merino Conference held in Montevideo, an excellent opportunity to meet Uruguayan customers of Falklands' wool, sheep farmers from other countries and Peter Ackroyd, President of the International Wool Textile Organization, IWTO.

  • Thursday, May 3rd 2018 - 08:44 UTC

    Uruguay´s soybean crop forecasted to drop 43% because of devastating drought

    Soybean production is forecast to drop to 1.7 million tons in 2017-18, according to an April 30 GAIN report from the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

    Due to the recent devastating drought, soybean production in Uruguay is forecast to drop to 1.7 million tons in 2017-18, according to an April 30 Global Agricultural Information Network (GAIN) report from the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

  • Thursday, May 3rd 2018 - 08:39 UTC

    Lack of investor confidence sees the Argentine Peso fall 3.11% against the dollar

    The central bank sold about US$ 400 million in the foreign exchange market as of early Wednesday afternoon, traders said

    Argentina’s peso currency closed down 3.11% on Wednesday at an all-time low of 21.2 per U.S. dollar, even as the central bank continued selling dollars to try to halt the slide of the local currency, traders said. The currency’s sustained weakening showed a lack of investor confidence in Latin America’s third largest economy, which is blighted by one of the world’s highest inflation rates.

  • Thursday, May 3rd 2018 - 08:33 UTC

    Customs union controversy remains at the heart of the UK cabinet

    Downing Street said the meeting acknowledged there were “challenges” to the existing proposals but that both the options put forward are still on the table

    Theresa May has asked officials to draw up “revised proposals” for post-Brexit customs arrangements after a key meeting with her most senior ministers. The Brexit sub committee met on Wednesday to try to agree on a new model to replace the UK's membership of the customs union.

  • Thursday, May 3rd 2018 - 08:29 UTC

    Dominican Republic drops Taiwan and establishes relations with Beijing

    The Dominican Republic said it believed its switch to ties with China would be “extraordinarily positive for the future of our country”, in an official statement

    The Dominican Republic and China announced on Tuesday they were establishing diplomatic relations as the Caribbean country became the latest nation to dump Taiwan, leaving it with just 19 diplomatic allies around the globe. Taipei said it was “deeply upset” at the decision, which it blamed on “dollar diplomacy”. The move deepens the island's international isolation while its giant neighbor flexes its economic and political might on the global stage.

  • Thursday, May 3rd 2018 - 08:13 UTC

    Euro zone economy grows faster than the UK in the first quarter

    Euro zone expanded 0.4% which is far better than the UK economy, which only grew by 0.1% in the same quarter.

    The European Union economy slowed in the first quarter of the year, official Eurostat figures have showed. Economic growth in the Euro zone slowed to 0.4% for the period from January to March 2018, compared with 0.7% in the previous quarter. Growth in the 19-country single currency bloc reached 2.5% year-on-year.

  • Wednesday, May 2nd 2018 - 20:45 UTC

    Fed leaves rates unchanged, confirms inflation near 2% target; hike expected at June meeting

    Jerome H. Powell chaired the Federal Open Market Committee, which voted unanimously the policy action. Next meeting in June 12/13

    The Federal Reserve on Wednesday left its benchmark interest rate unchanged, confirmed that inflation is near its 2% target, and strangely enough did not mention a word about the looming international trade confrontation. The central bank after a two-day meeting said inflation over the next 12 months should “run near” the 2% target, updating its language from March that indicated inflation would “move up” towards that level.

  • Wednesday, May 2nd 2018 - 08:25 UTC

    UK agrees on new measures to increase transparency in offshore havens

    Campaigners say public registers make it easier to uncover corruption, money laundering and tax dodging. The move was backed by both Labour and Tory MPs.

    The British government has agreed to calls for new measures aimed at increasing transparency in offshore tax havens. Facing a possible Commons defeat, ministers said they would not oppose an amendment to force British overseas territories to publish details of the true owners of companies based there.