International

• Thursday, December 29th 2011 - 21:33 UTC

  Spanish royals exposed: son in law involved in scandal and Crown expenses made public

  

  The Spanish king's son-in-law was charged Thursday in a fraud and embezzlement case that has damaged the royal family, which this week took the unprecedented step of disclosing its income.

• Wednesday, December 28th 2011 - 03:58 UTC

  Mexican telecoms giant planning to invest 5.4bn dollars in Brazil

  

  The Brazilian subsidiaries of Mexican telecoms giant America Movil are planning 10 billion Reais (5.4 billion dollars) worth of new investment in 2012, Folha de São Paulo said on Tuesday.

• Wednesday, December 28th 2011 - 03:31 UTC

  Madrid has first woman mayor; promises to bid for 2020 Olympic Games

  

  Ana Botella, the wife of former Spanish Prime Minister Jose Maria Aznar, was sworn-in Tuesday as Madrid’s first woman mayor. She succeeds Alberto Ruiz-Gallardon, mayor of the capital since 2003, who resigned to serve as Justice Minister in the new Conservative government of Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy.

• Wednesday, December 28th 2011 - 03:29 UTC

  Chile signs strategic science and education agreement with Massachusetts

  

  The Chilean government has signed a strategic bilateral agreement with the state of Massachusetts, opening the way for collaborative research in the key areas of education, energy and biotechnology.

• Wednesday, December 28th 2011 - 03:27 UTC

  US criticizes Japan for intervening to halt the rise of the Yen in the last 6 months

  

  The US Treasury on Tuesday criticized Japan's interventions to halt the Yen's rise in the last six months, saying they were unnecessary and that Tokyo would do better to strengthen its domestic economy and competitiveness.

• Wednesday, December 28th 2011 - 03:25 UTC

  US calls for appreciation of the Yuan but falls short of labelling China a currency manipulator

  

  United States announced it will press for further appreciation of the Yuan arguing the currency is undervalued, while declining to brand China a manipulator of its exchange rate.

• Tuesday, December 27th 2011 - 13:52 UTC

  Cuba advances with capitalist reforms to install efficient market economy

  

  Cuba will open up more of the country's retail services to the private sector next year, allowing Cubans to operate various services such as appliance and watch repair, and locksmith and carpentry shops, official media reported on Monday.

• Tuesday, December 27th 2011 - 09:43 UTC

  How US campaigns and elections shaped politics across the world

  

  * By Andrew Hammond - The eyes of much of North America and South America will this coming year be on the US presidential and congressional elections as Democrats and Republicans fight it out for control of the White House, the US House of Representatives, and the US Senate. The ballots could have key implications not just for US domestic issues, but also US foreign policy across the Americas region, including in Cuba and Venezuela.

• Monday, December 26th 2011 - 21:10 UTC

  Brazil overtakes the UK and becomes the world’s sixth largest economy

  

  Brazil has overtaken the UK as the world's sixth largest economy according to the Centre for Economics and Business Research, CEBR. The latest World Economic League Table also showed Asian countries moving up and European countries falling back.

• Monday, December 26th 2011 - 21:08 UTC

  “Grand principles don’t impress” IMF chief reminds the Euro zone leaders

  

  The head of the International Monetary Fund said that the world economy was in danger and urged Europeans to speak with one voice on a debt crisis that has rattled the global financial system.