International

• Saturday, November 26th 2011 - 03:12 UTC

  FAO estimates record oilseed production but soybean crop will be down

  

  Global oilseed production is estimated at record 472 million tons in the 2011-12 marketing year starting October but the growth in output will be subdued, FAO said in a report. Similarly soy bean production is expected to fall to 260.7 million tons from 265.8 million in 2010/2011.

• Friday, November 25th 2011 - 14:02 UTC

  British Services team ready for two-month Antarctica expedition to honour Captain Scott

  

  The Service personnel who will take part in the British Services Antarctic Expedition 2012 have recently completed their final mission rehearsal exercise (MRX) in the Ecrins National Park region of the French Alps.

• Friday, November 25th 2011 - 02:48 UTC

  Fitch downgrades Portugal’s rating to junk status; pressure mounting on Spain

  

  Rating agency Fitch downgraded Portugal's rating to junk status, citing large fiscal imbalances, high debts and the risks to its EU-mandated austerity program from a worsening economic outlook.

• Friday, November 25th 2011 - 02:12 UTC

  France and Germany agree not to disagree in public about the ECB role

  

  France and Germany agreed Thursday to stop arguing in public over whether the European Central Bank should do more to rescue the Euro zone from a deepening sovereign debt crisis.

• Friday, November 25th 2011 - 02:06 UTC

  UK confirms support for partnership strategy and defence of Overseas Territories

  

  The decision to build an airport tin St Helena and confirmation of UK’s commitment to defend its Overseas Territories were among the main conclusions of the latest Consultative Council (OTCC) which concluded this week in London.

• Thursday, November 24th 2011 - 15:18 UTC

  Chilean economy slows down as the mining sector contracts 6.5% in third quarter

  

  Chile's economy grew a seasonally adjusted 0.6% in the third quarter from the second quarter of 2011, slowing from a downwardly revised 1.3% in the previous quarter.

• 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.