International

• Wednesday, May 23rd 2012 - 01:53 UTC

  Chile not interested in joining G20 at the expense of Argentina’s membership

  

  Chile is not interested in joining the G-20 of leading advanced and emerging economies if that means sacking Argentina, said President Sebastián Piñera administration’s spokesperson, Andres Chadwick.

• Wednesday, May 23rd 2012 - 01:44 UTC

  Fitch downgrades Japan’s credit rating fearful of political stalemate and snowballing debt

  

  Fitch cut Japan's sovereign credit status on Tuesday to the lowest level among global ratings agencies as a political stalemate dims the chance that the country can curb its snowballing debt.

• Wednesday, May 23rd 2012 - 01:24 UTC

  UN says half of global fisheries are exhausted and a further third depleted

  

  Marking the International Day for Biological Diversity, Secretary General Ban Ki-moon highlighted on Tuesday the fragile state of the world’s oceans, urging greater protection for marine biodiversity.

• Wednesday, May 23rd 2012 - 01:22 UTC

  Spain anticipated the economy will continue to slump in the second quarter

  

  Spain said it would meet its deficit targets this year despite a new slippage in its regions' accounts and a further contraction of the economy in the second quarter.

• Wednesday, May 23rd 2012 - 01:16 UTC

  Falkland Oil & Gas expects farm-in deal with “a listed independent” firm

  

  The political noise stirred up by Argentina over the Falkland Islands will not deter big energy firms from investing in the region if there is enough oil found to make it worthwhile, said the chief executive of exploration company Falkland Oil & Gas.

• Tuesday, May 22nd 2012 - 18:55 UTC

  NATO aggress to leave Afghanistan end of 2014: what happens later is anybody’s guess

  

  NATO leaders sealed a landmark agreement to hand control of Afghanistan over to its own security forces by the middle of next year, putting the Western alliance on an “irreversible” path out of an unpopular, decade-long war.

• Tuesday, May 22nd 2012 - 18:43 UTC

  Women commanders take over HMS Portland and Patrol Boat Squadron

  

  Two Royal Navy commanders have accomplished two major achievements: Commander Sarah West, aged 40, joins Type 23 frigate HMS Portland in Rosyth on Tuesday becoming the first woman in the Royal Navy's history to be selected to command a major warship.

• Tuesday, May 22nd 2012 - 18:39 UTC

  US and Japan leading economic recovery but still fragile says latest OECD report

  

  The United States and Japan are leading a fragile economic recovery among developed countries that could yet be blown off course if the Euro zone fails to contain its flaring growth crisis, the OECD said on Tuesday.

• Tuesday, May 22nd 2012 - 06:09 UTC

  Argentina proposal to increase Mercosur common external tariff from 22% to 35%

  

  Argentina is planning to propose its fellow Mercosur members to increase the common external tariff, CET from the current 22% to 35%, when they meet at the next summit in Mendoza. Argentina currently holds the pro tempore chair of the group and at the coming summit the helm will be transferred to Brazil.

• Tuesday, May 22nd 2012 - 06:05 UTC

  Exports of heifers booming as China build ‘factory-modelled” dairy farms

  

  Agribusiness company Elders says it can't get enough dairy heifers from Australia to supply China's growing demand and for the second consecutive year, a record shipment of 100,000 cattle will sail from dairies in Australia, New Zealand and Uruguay.