
The cruise sector in Europe seems to have shrugged off the economic crisis and Gibraltar, in common with many key Mediterranean passenger ports, is reaping the benefit, reports the Gibraltar Chronicle.

Peru's Machu Picchu ancient ruins, Antoni Gaudi's Sagrada Familia church in Barcelona and a New Orleans elementary school are among the cultural heritage sites threatened by neglect or overdevelopment, a preservationist group said.

Australia has raised its main interest rate to 3.25% from 3%, becoming the first G20 nation to do so as the global economy begins to recover. The move by its central bank was not unexpected as the Australian economy was the only one in the developed world to expand in the first half of 2009.

France dismissed on Tuesday as speculation a British newspaper report that it was in secret talks with Gulf Arab states, Russia, China and Japan to replace the US dollar with a basket of currencies in trading oil.

The price of gold has hit a new all-time high of 1,043.77 US dollars an ounce after a decline in the greenback boosted the attractiveness of metals to investors. Copper prices also rose above 6,000 USD a ton, as the weaker dollar made metals cheaper for non-US investors.

Worldwide growth in the Information Technology sector will create 5.8 million new jobs and 75,000 new businesses in the next four years, research from Microsoft has forecast.

Hundreds of farmers protested Monday in Brussels to put pressure on European Union (EU) agriculture ministers meeting to discuss low milk prices. The talks came after weeks of protests across Europe, with farmers dumping milk stocks and withholding supplies at what they see as uneconomic prices.

Saudi Prince Alwaleed bin Talal, a main investor in Citigroup, urged the US government to sell its stake in the bank as soon as this year to boost investor confidence, Emerging Markets magazine reported.

Brazil became on Monday for the first time ever a creditor of the International Monetary Fund when it formalized a decision to buy 10 billion US dollars worth of IMF notes nominated in SDR.

Desire Petroleum prospective un-risked recoverable resources net in Falkland Islands waters are over 3 billion barrels of oil in the company’s ten top prospects according to the recently completed Competent Person’s Report, CPR and released this week.