Economy

• Wednesday, December 27th 2017 - 11:08 UTC

  Argentine Air Force base turned into an airport for low cost airlines' operations

  

  El Palomar airport to the west of metropolitan Buenos Aires was officially incorporated to Argentina's National System of Airports and will be open for the low cost airlines to operate, beginning January.

• Wednesday, December 27th 2017 - 10:44 UTC

  Brazil is the world's ninth largest producer of hydrocarbons

  

  Brazil has produced 3.3 million barrels per day (b/d) of petroleum and other liquids so far in 2017, according to data through August, up from 3.2 million b/d in 2016, making it the ninth-largest producer of petroleum and other liquids in the world. Production of crude oil in Brazil increased in recent years as producers targeted large, offshore, pre-salt oil deposits. Brazil’s pre-salt oil production in 2016 reached a record 1.02 million b/d, surpassing the 2015 production level by 33%.

• Wednesday, December 27th 2017 - 09:52 UTC

  US poverty rate down; but top 5% of families accounted for more than one fifth of total income in 2016

  

  A stronger US economy lifted American household incomes in 2016 and drove the poverty rate down to the level seen before the financial crisis. The median household income increased by 3.2% to US$59,039, rising for a second consecutive year as more people found full time jobs.

• Wednesday, December 27th 2017 - 09:36 UTC

  Moody's expects Argentine economic recovery in 2018 and 2019

  

  Credit risk rating agency Moody's expects Argentina's economic recovery to continue in 2018 and 2019, helped by the reforms advanced by the Mauricio Macri's administration in the last two years.

• Sunday, December 24th 2017 - 17:21 UTC

  EU bureaucracy ready to sign deal with Mercosur, but France and Ireland object

  

  The European Union now hopes to conclude a trade deal with the Mercosur bloc by February next year. EU agriculture chief Phil Hogan admitted that there were still 15 “open issues”, following a “difficult” meeting with the Mercosur countries in Buenos Aires last week.

• Saturday, December 23rd 2017 - 12:29 UTC

  Trump boasts his Xmas present: the US$ 1.5tn tax overhaul law as promised

  

  US President Donald Trump signed Republicans’ massive US$1.5 trillion tax overhaul into law, cementing the biggest legislative victory of his first year in office, and also approved a short-term spending bill that averts a possible government shutdown. Trump said he wanted to sign the tax bill before leaving Washington for his Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida, rather than stage a more formal ceremony in January, so he could keep his promise to finish work before Christmas.

• Saturday, December 23rd 2017 - 10:14 UTC

  Venezuela's economy contracted a massive 16.5% in 2016, admits government

  

  Venezuela's economy shrank a massive 16.5% in 2016, according to an official government filing to the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The oil-rich but impoverished country attributed the collapse to a contraction of 9.9% in the oil sector and 16.1% in the non-oil economy.

• Saturday, December 23rd 2017 - 10:11 UTC

  Petrobras 2018/22 business plan foresees US$ 74.5bn investments

  

  Petrobras' business and management plan for 2018 through 2022, approved by the Brazilian state-owned oil company's board of directors, foresees investments of US$ 74.5 billion, slightly higher than the US$ 74.1 billion projected in the previous 2017-2021 program.

• Saturday, December 23rd 2017 - 09:58 UTC

  Petrobras corruption: Offshore corporation agrees to pay US$ 422 million in fines

  

  Keppel Corporation's offshore and marine unit has reached a global resolution with criminal authorities in the United States, Brazil and Singapore in relation to corrupt payments made by a former agent in Brazil. The resolution, involving three jurisdictions across the world, is unprecedented for a Singapore company.

• Saturday, December 23rd 2017 - 09:40 UTC

  Boeing's interest in Embraer conditioned by the Brazilian government

  

  United States manufacturer Boeing Co sought to calm Brazilian concern about a potential tie-up with Embraer SA after President Michel Temer and other officials warned they would veto any full takeover bid for the regional jet maker.