International

• Wednesday, September 30th 2009 - 07:59 UTC

  Britain’s second quarter performance not as bad as expected

  

  The recession in Britain was not as deep as previously feared between April and June, official figures have confirmed. UK output shrank by 0.6% during the quarter - the second upward revision to official figures since July - the Office for National Statistics (ONS) said.

• Wednesday, September 30th 2009 - 07:52 UTC

  PM Brown launches “make-or-break” campaign for Labour

  

  The coming general election will present Britain with its “biggest choice for a generation” between a Labour Party offering prosperity and hope and Conservatives who have “no hearts”, PM Gordon Brown said in his last conference speech before the poll expected in the spring.

• Wednesday, September 30th 2009 - 07:16 UTC

  Major reshuffle in Spanish bank with strong interests in Latinamerica

  

  Spain's second-largest bank BBVA announced on Tuesday it was replacing its widely-respected CEO but confirmed that its powerful chairman Francisco Gonzalez was staying in place.

• Wednesday, September 30th 2009 - 01:39 UTC

  Latinamerican offshore banking industry ready for the future

  

  Mercopress had a chance to catch up with Nate Suppaiah, founder and managing editor of Alternative Latin Investor (ALI), a bimonthly digital publication that features information on alternative investments in the LatAm region. Some of their topics include: hedge funds, forex, private equity, real estate, renewable energy, art, wine, and philanthropy.

• Tuesday, September 29th 2009 - 13:18 UTC

  Weakening dollar and rising Euro and Yuan, anticipates World Bank

  

  The president of the World Bank cautioned US authorities on Monday against assuming the dollar would maintain its role as the world's reserve currency. Robert Zoellick said other currencies such as the Euro and the Chinese Yuan could win increasing acceptance in international currency markets.

• Tuesday, September 29th 2009 - 10:34 UTC

  Bag of claims inflation: Falklands, Cuba plus Diego García and Mayotte

  

  The recent second summit of South America and African leaders added to the traditional statements on the Falklands/Malvinas dispute and the US trade embargo on Cuba, similar demands referred to disputes over islands in the Indian Ocean involving Britain and France.

• Monday, September 28th 2009 - 15:15 UTC

  Germany's Merkel Set To Form New Coalition Govt

  

  German Chancellor Angela Merkel Monday prepares to form a new center-right government, after she won a second term in Sunday's general election.

• Monday, September 28th 2009 - 15:11 UTC

  Hong Kong “equally important” to London, says HSBC CEO

  

  The chief executive of HSBC, Michael Geoghegen, will move to Hong Kong from London as the banking group seeks to focus on Asia.

• Monday, September 28th 2009 - 09:01 UTC

  Bank of England reveals dramatic moments from the October crisis

  

  Two UK banks almost collapsed in October last year, the governor of the Bank of England has revealed. HBOS - now part of Lloyds Banking Group - and RBS were within hours of going under, Mervyn King told BBC Two's The Love of Money program.

• Monday, September 28th 2009 - 07:58 UTC

  Gaddafi proposed the creation of a South Atlantic military alliance

  

  Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi proposed a military alliance mirroring the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, to counteract the influence of the US and Europe during the second Africa-South America summit held over the weekend in Margarita island, Venezuela and which convened almost sixty leaders.