International

• Monday, January 14th 2013 - 03:21 UTC

  Gibraltar anticipates rough year with Spain because of Treaty of Utrecht 300 years

  

  Gibraltar must remain steadfast in its own position on sovereignty the Chief Minister Fabian Picardo has made clear. In a wide-ranging New Year message broadcast last week on GBC Mr Picardo took up the recent remarks made by Spain’s ruling party (Partido Popular) and urged them to return to tripartite dialogue as the (opposition) PSOE in Andalucia is also urging.

• Monday, January 14th 2013 - 03:12 UTC

  Falklands’ referendum: CFK letter to PM Cameron distributed to UN General Assembly members

  

  The open letter sent by Argentine president Cristina Fernandez to Prime Minister David Cameron demanding the return of the Falkland Islands, which allegedly were “forcibly stripped” from Buenos Aires in 1833 will be distributed as a document among members of the UN General Assembly, on request from the Argentine ambassador Maria Perceval.

• Saturday, January 12th 2013 - 18:57 UTC

  P&O cruise line suspends stops in Argentina, confirms calls in the Falklands

  

  British cruise line operator P&O has scrapped stops in Argentina because of continuing tensions with the country over the Falkland Islands. Two of its vessels will no longer dock at three Argentine port destinations on around-the-world cruises. The decision was taken because there was no guarantee they will be able to dock.

• Saturday, January 12th 2013 - 18:26 UTC

  Bluefin tuna opens 2013 with record auction price at Tsukiji: 1.78 million dollars

  

  The price of premium “Oma” bluefin tunas has reached a new record: JPY 155.4 million or 1.78 million dollars, in the first auction of 2013 at Tokyo's Tsukiji Fish market, compared to JPY 56.49 million (640.696 dollars) in the first auction of 2012.

• Saturday, January 12th 2013 - 18:18 UTC

  Chilean fish exports total 3.8bn in ten months; salmon the main item with 1.2bn

  

  Chilean exports of fishery products and aquaculture in the first 10 months of 2012 reached 3.8 billion dollars,1% over the same period in 2011. But the volume of exports increased 11.3%, according to the latest stats from Chile’s Fisheries and Aquaculture Under-Secretariat (Subpesca).

• Saturday, January 12th 2013 - 18:05 UTC

  Maduro administration bans four clips on postponement of Chavez inauguration

  

  Venezuela’s National Telecommunications Commission (Conatel) launched proceedings on 9 January against the terrestrial television station Globovisión over its broadcast of four clips about the postponement of the inauguration of President Hugo Chavez for a new six-year term, originally scheduled for the following day.

• Saturday, January 12th 2013 - 17:53 UTC

  Methanex Canada to idle plant in Punta Arenas because of insufficient gas provision

  

  Chilean Energy minister Jorge Bunster regretted on Friday Methanex Canada announcement on its decision to idle operations in Chile in March due to lack of adequate natural gas supply. The company stated that it does not have sufficient feedstock to keep the plant in operation given the natural gas supply challenges.

• Saturday, January 12th 2013 - 17:45 UTC

  Cristina Fernandez meets Chavez family and has lunch with the Castro brothers

  

  Argentine president Cristina Fernandez is flying Saturday to Emirates the first leg of a trade tour that includes the Far East after spending 24 hours in Cuba where she met the Castro brothers, visited the relatives of cancer-stricken President Hugo Chavez and late Friday held a mini summit with Venezuelan Vice president Nicolas Maduro and Peruvian head of state Ollanta Humala.

• Saturday, January 12th 2013 - 12:13 UTC

  More signs that the UK economy contracted in the last quarter of 2012

  

  Disappointing figures on industrial production and construction in November have added to fears that the UK economy contracted in the last quarter of 2012. The index of production grew 0.3% in November, compared with October, but had been expected to grow more as some North Sea oil and gas production resumed following maintenance.

• Saturday, January 12th 2013 - 12:00 UTC

  Twenty four South Atlantic countries meet in Uruguay to promote cooperation

  

  Twenty four countries from South America and Africa with coast on the Atlantic Ocean will be debating next week in Uruguay how to increase cooperation in several fields such as environment, charting and seabed resources exploration and fighting organized crime.