International

• Friday, April 15th 2011 - 05:31 UTC

  China’s March inflation fastest since 2008; further tightening anticipated

  

  Inflation in China accelerated in March to the fastest rate since 2008, despite government efforts to cool prices. Consumer prices rose by 5.4% in March compared with a year earlier, the National Bureau of Statistics said. In February, the annual figure was 4.9%.

• Friday, April 15th 2011 - 00:01 UTC

  ‘Argentina’s protectionism’ the great obstacle for EU/Mercosur trade talks

  

  European Union’s top trade negotiator, Karel de Gucht, accused Argentina of being “the great obstacle” in an association agreement between the EU and Mercosur, and threatened to take the case before the WTO.

• Thursday, April 14th 2011 - 23:50 UTC

  Mercosur outperformed in 2008/09 recession and during 2010 recovery

  

  Latin America and the Caribbean have weathered the 2008-2009 recession much better than it had previous downturns. However less well-known is that the region, particularly Mercosur members, also decisively outperformed many other regions during the same period with a decline in growth smaller than that of the middle-income country average and with a rebound that was swifter and stronger.

• Thursday, April 14th 2011 - 22:57 UTC

  Latam’s challenge: combating inflation but also the inflow of speculative capital

  

  Strong public and private consumption, abundant credit and strong currency appreciation among other reasons helped Latin American countries overcome the 2008/09 recession and outperform other regions according to the World Bank report Latin America and the Caribbean’s Success Put to the Test.

• Thursday, April 14th 2011 - 21:01 UTC

  More people deeper in poverty as food prices soar 36%, says World Bank

  

  Driven in part by higher fuel costs connected to events in the Middle East and North Africa, global food prices are 36% above their levels a year ago and remain volatile, pushing people deeper into poverty, according to new World Bank Group numbers released Thursday.

• Thursday, April 14th 2011 - 20:43 UTC

  The bank that grasses politicians up

  

  A banker is a fellow who lends you his umbrella when the sun is shining and wants it back the minute it begins to rain” claimed Mark Twain a long time ago. After greedy and socially irresponsible bankers wreaked havoc around the world in 2008 no wonder this cynical comment by the famous writer is still referred to.

• Thursday, April 14th 2011 - 19:54 UTC

  BRICS calls for new global monetary system with less reliance on the dollar

  

  The BRICS group of emerging-market powers kept up the pressure for a revamped global monetary system that relies less on the US dollar and for a louder voice in international financial institutions.

• Thursday, April 14th 2011 - 05:34 UTC

  Oil to remain high, look for alternative sources of energy recommends IMF

  

  Oil prices are likely to remain high for the foreseeable future and IMF economists say that governments should be looking to back sustainable alternative sources of energy.

• Thursday, April 14th 2011 - 05:32 UTC

  UN peacekeeping operations to suffer most from US funding cuts

  

  United States lawmakers are poised to cut spending on the United Nations by hundreds of millions of dollars, less than a week after UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon came to Congress to ask for continued strong support.

• Thursday, April 14th 2011 - 05:16 UTC

  Libya and global financial system reform in BRICS’ international agenda

  

  Leaders of the world's major emerging powers will meet again Thursday in China to tackle the conflict in Libya, reform of the international financial system and look at how developing nations can exercise more clout on the global stage.