International

• Wednesday, November 23rd 2011 - 23:07 UTC

  WTO cuts world’s export growth to 5.8%; warns on unilateral actions

  

  The World Trade Organization slashed its forecast for the world’s export growth to just 5.8% for the year, down from 6.5%. WTO Director-General Pascal Lamy, in his annual report said that world trade has slowed “considerably” in recent months.

• Wednesday, November 23rd 2011 - 20:40 UTC

  EU top diplomat calls for strategic link with Latinamerica and announces trip to the region

  

  The European Union High Representative for Foreign Affairs Catherine Ashton described relations with Latinamerica as ‘strategic’ and called for an intensification of political dialogue with the region of which the EU is the main foreign investor.

• Wednesday, November 23rd 2011 - 20:33 UTC

  Berlin and Paris again clash over ECB; Euro confidence crisis on German shore

  

  Germany and France again on Wednesday over whether the European Central Bank should take bolder steps to stem the Euro zone debt crisis, with Chancellor Angela Merkel issuing one of her starkest warnings yet against fiddling with the central bank's strict inflation-fighting mandate.

• Wednesday, November 23rd 2011 - 20:19 UTC

  Global markets slide overwhelmed by negative news

  

  Global markets fell Wednesday after more evidence emerged that the global economy is faltering fast and that the Euro zone is heading for a recession as the debt crisis spreads to the bigger economies like Italy and Spain.

• Wednesday, November 23rd 2011 - 19:56 UTC

  Record level funding for mine-clearance but increased use of antipersonnel mines

  

  The latest report on landmines has both good and bad news. It says governments have provided a record level of funding to remove the weapons. But at the same time the use of antipersonnel mines has increased.

• Wednesday, November 23rd 2011 - 06:25 UTC

  Head of Spain’s main banking group meets with Brazilian president

  

  The president of Spain’s banking group Santander Emilio Botin described Brazil as “a very interesting market for Spain” following a meeting with Brazilian president Dilma Rousseff.

• Wednesday, November 23rd 2011 - 02:50 UTC

  Scientists find “sunken islands” part of super-continent Gondwana land link

  

  Australian scientists have discovered two huge sunken islands in the Indian Ocean west of Perth. The islands, about the size of Tasmania, were once part of the super-continent Gondwana and are more than 1.5km underwater.

• Wednesday, November 23rd 2011 - 00:44 UTC

  Uruguay business elite and officials reminded of the Asian-Pacific basin might

  

  It was to be a “complaints as usual day” plus the announcement Uruguay is poised for another year of record exports, close to 12 billion dollars. But the speaker contracted for the celebration of Exporter’s Day left the Uruguayan business audience and government officials quite surprised.

• Tuesday, November 22nd 2011 - 22:49 UTC

  EU and Latam leaders call for quick conclusion of the EU/Mercosur trade accord

  

  European Union and Latin American leaders called for a quicker pace in concluding the EU/Mercosur cooperation and trade negotiations. The statement took place during the meeting in Brussels of the Euro-Latinamerica Parliamentary assembly.

• Tuesday, November 22nd 2011 - 18:39 UTC

  UK new strategy for Overseas Territories to be discussed at the Consultative Council

  

  Falkland Islands representatives will be attending the annual Overseas Territories Consultative Council on November 23/24 in London when the British Government's new strategy for its Overseas Territories will be at the heart of discussions.