International

• Monday, December 27th 2010 - 08:02 UTC

  China raises interest rate determined to contain inflation, credit and property prices

  

  China’s central bank raised interest rates for the second time in less than three months as authorities ramp up efforts to curb borrowing, rein in property prices and tame inflation.

• Monday, December 27th 2010 - 07:55 UTC

  South Africa invited to join the BRIC group of emerging markets

  

  South Africa has been formally asked to join the BRIC group of major emerging markets, comprising Brazil, Russia, India and China, according to a statement on the web from China’s Foreign Affairs minister Yang Jiechi.

• Monday, December 27th 2010 - 07:51 UTC

  Ecuador, the latest Latinamerican country to recognize a free sovereign Palestine

  

  The Ecuadorean government is the latest in Latin American to recognize Palestine as a sovereign state. The Foreign Ministry said in a statement that President Rafael Correa officially recognized Palestine on Friday as “free and independent, with its borders since 1967” before the Israeli occupation.

• Saturday, December 25th 2010 - 08:50 UTC

  Flyglobespan MOD charter to Falklands faces £ 4 million redundancies claim

  

  Flyglobespan, the airline that had a contract with the UK Ministry of Defence to cover the twice weekly shuttle to the Falkland Islands and collapsed a year ago, is facing a £4 million claim from former staff over its failure to consult on redundancies.

• Saturday, December 25th 2010 - 08:21 UTC

  Those for a unified Korea raise your hands

  

  *By Gwynne Dyer - South Korea’s Defence minister, Kim Tae-Young, was forced to resign after criticism that he was too slow to respond when North Korea attacked the island of Yeonpeong killing at least four people. But what was he supposed to do? What can his replacement, former chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Kim Kwan-jin, do?

• Friday, December 24th 2010 - 07:59 UTC

  China prepared to support Euro zone, buying sovereign Greek and Portuguese bonds

  

  China said on Thursday it was willing to support Euro zone countries through the region's debt crisis. “We are ready to support the Euro zone countries to overcome the financial crisis and realize economic recovery,” foreign ministry spokeswoman Jiang Yu told reporters.

• Friday, December 24th 2010 - 07:54 UTC

  Repsol sells 3.3% of YPF for 500 million USD

  

  Spain's oil major Repsol YPF said on Thursday it had sold 3.3% of its Argentine unit YPF to investment funds for 500 million US dollars as part of an effort to redirect investments to less mature markets.

• Friday, December 24th 2010 - 07:37 UTC

  China defends soaring economic and trade relations with Africa

  

  China has defended its economic and trade relations with African nations. In the first policy paper on the subject, Beijing said China-Africa co-operation helped Africa to reach the UN Millennium Development Goals, and boosted common prosperity and progress.

• Friday, December 24th 2010 - 07:30 UTC

  Japanese Fishing Agency officials admit taking “gifts” of whale meat

  

  After more than two and half years of pressure by Greenpeace and the famous “Tokyo Two” trials, officials with the Japanese Fishing Agency publicly admitted Thursday that they received whale meat as “gifts” from private companies contracted by the government to slaughter whales, reports Greenpeace USA blog.

• Thursday, December 23rd 2010 - 08:14 UTC

  Sweden to close embassy in Argentina because of budget constraints

  

  The Swedish government Wednesday said it would close five embassies next year due to budget constraints, among them offices in Argentina.