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MercoPress, en Español

Montevideo, June 17th 2026 - 14:55 UTC

Economy

  • Saturday, March 14th 2026 - 01:54 UTC

    Global volatility hits Argentine assets as country risk edges back toward 600 points

    In the local market, the S&P Merval fell 2% in peso terms and 2.8% in dollars

    Argentine assets ended the week under pressure, pulled lower by international volatility linked to the Middle East war, in a session marked by falling stocks and bonds, a higher country risk index and renewed oil-driven pressure on inflation and financial expectations. Brent crude settled at $103.14 a barrel, while Wall Street extended its weekly losses amid concern over global energy supply.

  • Thursday, March 12th 2026 - 10:40 UTC

    Argentina: Fuel price rises complicate March inflation and tighten the government’s peso strategy

    In the market, several consultancies are already assuming that the latest fuel adjustment, together with education, tariffs and food, will make that path harder.

    Rising fuel prices have added new pressure to Argentina’s March inflation outlook, in a month already burdened by the start of the school year, utility adjustments and seasonal pressure on food prices. In the local market, gasoline prices have risen by roughly 7% to 8% so far in March, increasing the risk that monthly inflation could move back toward the 3% range.

  • Wednesday, March 11th 2026 - 22:33 UTC

    Uruguayans see security as top national concern, cost of living as main personal problem

    The divergence is emerging at a time when Uruguay’s annual inflation rate stands at 3.11%, its lowest level in decades. Photo: Sebastian Astorga

    Uruguayans continue to identify security and crime as the country’s main problem, but when the question shifts to everyday life, the dominant concern becomes the cost of living, according to a new survey by University of the Republic academics analysed in a report by El Observador. The poll also found that about one-third of respondents believe such problems stem from “longer inheritances” or broader trends that no government has managed to solve.

  • Monday, March 9th 2026 - 17:04 UTC

    UK warns of higher inflation and backs oil reserve release amid Middle East war

    She also said London, one of the world’s main maritime insurance centres, was in contact with the sector as risks to commercial shipping increased

    British finance minister Rachel Reeves said on Monday that the United Kingdom was ready to support a coordinated release of international oil reserves if the Middle East crisis keeps pushing up energy prices, though no formal G7 decision has yet been taken. Reeves made the statement after joining a virtual meeting of G7 finance ministers, as oil prices remained elevated because of disruption to shipping through the Strait of Hormuz. Reuters reported that the option under discussion is a joint emergency stock release under the International Energy Agency framework.

  • Monday, March 9th 2026 - 10:59 UTC

    Oil rises above US$100 a barrel as Middle East war and Hormuz disruption hit supply

    U.S. President Donald Trump reacted to the oil rally with a Truth Social post, saying it was “a very small price to pay” for “security and peace in America and for the world.”

    Oil prices climbed above US$100 a barrel on Sunday in futures trading, reaching their highest levels since 2022 as the war in the Middle East, the effective closure of the Strait of Hormuz and fresh production cuts among Gulf producers tightened supply expectations. Reuters reported Brent rose as high as US$111.04 a barrel while West Texas Intermediate (WTI) touched US$111.24 in early trading. AP later put Brent at US$107.97 and WTI at US$106.22, both more than 16% above the previous close.

  • Friday, March 6th 2026 - 15:41 UTC

    Oil posts its biggest weekly jump since 2020 as the Iran war disrupts Hormuz

    The market is no longer reacting only to the fighting, but to the concrete risk to supply

    Oil became this week’s clearest barometer of the Middle East crisis, with Brent hovering near US$90 a barrel and WTI around US$87.5, putting both contracts on track for their biggest weekly advance since 2020. The same factor sits behind the surge: the de facto blockage of the Strait of Hormuz, through which roughly one-fifth of the world’s oil normally passes.

  • Wednesday, March 4th 2026 - 22:50 UTC

    Brazil completes its legislative process and ratifies the EU–Mercosur deal

    Brazil’s ratification strengthens Mercosur’s internal momentum after Uruguay and Argentina recently moved the deal through their own parliaments

    Brazil’s Congress on Wednesday ratified the trade agreement between Mercosur and the European Union, completing the legislative step in the South American bloc’s largest economy. The Senate approved the treaty unanimously, after the lower house cleared the text last week, according to local reporting and wire-service coverage.

  • Wednesday, March 4th 2026 - 13:27 UTC

    Uruguay cuts policy rate to 5.75% after external shock, with inflation still below target

    The BCU noted that 12-month inflation fell again in January for a seventh straight month, reaching 3.46%, “approaching the lower bound of the tolerance range” around the official target

    Uruguay’s Central Bank cut its benchmark policy rate by 75 basis points to 5.75%, from 6.5%, in a unanimous decision and the seventh consecutive reduction, as it weighed the market impact of the renewed Middle East conflict and a rebound in the U.S. dollar.

  • Wednesday, March 4th 2026 - 13:04 UTC

    Argentina hits oil output record on Vaca Muerta as Brent tops $80 on Iran war

    Official data put January production at 4,262,675 cubic meters, topping the previous high set in December 2025

    Argentina posted its highest monthly crude output on official record in January, at a time when global energy markets are again under strain from the Iran–Israel–US conflict and renewed pressure on key supply routes.

  • Wednesday, March 4th 2026 - 10:50 UTC

    FIH Group sells Portsmouth Harbor Ferry Company for £11.6m.

    The Portsmouth Harbor Ferry Company (PHFC), which takes passengers between Gosport and Portsea, was bought by the parent company of Collins River Enterprises – trading as Uber Boat by Thames Clippers – from Falkland Islands Holdings Group.