Investments

• Friday, March 11th 2016 - 20:47 UTC

  Odebrecht's involvement in Petrobras corruption scandal costing the conglomerate dearly

  

  The Odebrecht group of companies, whose top officials have been sentenced to prison for involvement in the corruption scheme of Brazil's largest company Petrobras, has come under strong pressure from its creditors to use the crown jewel, the petrochemical company Braskem as collateral to avoid filing for bankruptcy.

• Friday, March 11th 2016 - 20:06 UTC

  Brazil's February inflation down, but central bank calls for structural reforms and budget control

  

  Brazil’s consumer-price index slowed in February, providing relief for the country’s central bank amid its efforts to curb inflationary pressures. The consumer-price index, IPCA, rose 0.90% in February, compared with an increase of 1.27% in January, the Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics, or IBGE, said.

• Friday, March 11th 2016 - 20:03 UTC

  Rousseff rejects calls for her resignation and confirms Finance minister Barbosa

  

  Brazil's President Dilma Rousseff rejected calls for her resignation on Friday midst a political storm deepened by a massive corruption scandal and blamed her opponents for causing a crisis that has damaged the Brazilian economy. She also confirmed her Finance minister Nelson Barbosa.

• Friday, March 11th 2016 - 05:38 UTC

  ECB cuts rate to 0% and announces new stimulus, but market reactions are mixed

  

  European stock markets have fallen and the Euro has soared following the economic stimulus measures announced by the European Central Bank on Thursday. After initially rising following the broader than expected package, Frankfurt closed down 2.3%, Paris ended 1.7% lower and the FTSE 100 slid 1.8%.

• Friday, March 11th 2016 - 05:29 UTC

  Brexit would be “a disaster for UK science” warn 150 fellows from Royal Society

  

  Stephen Hawking has called for Britain to stay in the EU, saying that a Brexit would be a “disaster for UK science”. A letter to the Times newspaper signed by more than 150 fellows of the Royal Society argues that leaving the EU would devastate research.

• Friday, March 11th 2016 - 05:22 UTC

  Purge in YPF; financial expert chosen as successor of Galuccio

  

  Miguel Ángel Gutiérrez looks is to become the new president of Argentina’s state-controlled energy giant YPF, it was revealed this week after Miguel Galuccio confirmed he will step down as head of the company on April 30.

• Friday, March 11th 2016 - 05:18 UTC

  Brazil's Odebrecht network of alleged bribery practices investigated in several Latin American countries

  

  Argentina is investigating whether the local unit of Brazil's Odebrecht paid bribes to government officials, an Argentine prosecutor said this week, deepening the regional fallout from the biggest corruption scandal in Brazil’s history.

• Monday, March 7th 2016 - 05:12 UTC

  Argentina's YPF planning to cut capital expenditure by at least 20/25%

  

  Argentina's state-controlled energy company YPF will cut capital expenditure by at least 20-25% this year to mitigate the impact of the global oil price rout — leading to growing concerns among union leaders, who claim up to 2,000 workers would be laid off because of the company’s decision.

• Monday, March 7th 2016 - 04:34 UTC

  Panama wants to be Home Port for cruises, but companies are 'asking too much'

  

  Panama is holding tough negotiations with cruise lines hoping they will return to the country, using local facilities as Home Port, but government authorities admit that the demands from the companies are too high.

• Monday, March 7th 2016 - 04:26 UTC

  Montevideo/Falklands/Malvinas air link is “viable”, says ex Uruguayan president

  

  Uruguay's former president Luis Lacalle Herrera said that an air bridge between Montevideo and the Falklands/Malvinas Islands is 'viable' and was optimistic about such an opportunity in the near future.