Latin America

• Friday, January 3rd 2014 - 18:40 UTC

  'Andean super crop' quinoa opens the way for the UN Year of Family Farming

  

  Increased production and consumption of quinoa, coupled with higher visibility of and greater scientific knowledge about the so-called “Andean super crop” is the legacy left to the world by the International Year of Quinoa 2013, the closing ceremonies of which were held in Bolivia and Peru.

• Friday, January 3rd 2014 - 05:36 UTC

  Mujica admits relation with Argentina is “at a standstill”: all depends on Cristina

  

  President José Mujica admitted that Uruguay's relationship with Argentina is “at a standstill”, and suggested that improving relations was up to counterpart Cristina Fernández and her actions, since “I'm always open to dialogue”.

• Thursday, January 2nd 2014 - 15:35 UTC

  New Year in Argentina brings: hikes in urban transport and fuel and promises of a capped basket

  

  New Year arrived in Argentina with much needed rainfall relief, but also with a hefty increase in urban transport fares, the same with fuel prices at the pump and the promise of a list of 200 products included in a price agreement with the county’s major supermarkets and retailers.

• Friday, December 27th 2013 - 05:32 UTC

  Uruguay's new Economy minister pledges continuity of current market friendly policies

  

  Uruguay will continue to consolidate its market friendly policies, pledged incoming Economy minister Mario Bergara, 48. on taking office on Thursday surrounded by President Jose Mujica and Vice president Danilo Astori. He replaced Fernando Lorenzo who was forced to resign following a major scandal involving the failure and shut down of the country's flag air carrier Pluna.

• Friday, December 27th 2013 - 05:28 UTC

  Blackouts continue in Argentina while government keeps threatening power distributors

  

  Blackouts continued in several neighborhoods of Argentina's metropolitan Buenos Aires area while protests increased including pickets in highways, attempts to set on fire power distributors offices or kidnap power companies' officers while the only resource from government has been to blame companies and threaten to take over utilities.

• Friday, December 27th 2013 - 05:18 UTC

  Australian cruise operators interested in developing Puerto Williams in Chile

  

  Australian travel agents linked to the cruise industry visited Puerto Williams in the extreme south of Chile to check on the facilities, services and infrastructure with the purpose of planning cruise calls on a regular basis. Puerto Williams in located on Navarino island across from Ushuaia in Argentina.

• Friday, December 27th 2013 - 04:58 UTC

  Argentina makes its case to Forbes: 'commitment has been to treat all bondholders equally'

  

  By Cecilia Nahón (*) - The op-ed published on October 21 entitled “Supreme Court Moves Us Closer To Holding Deadbeat Argentina Accountable” openly distorts Argentina´s recent history and the facts surrounding its debt restructuring.

• Friday, December 27th 2013 - 00:16 UTC

  Cristina Fernandez determined to decide on the incumbent candidate for 2015

  

  Argentine president Cristina Fernandez denied point blank any prospects of her running for office for a third consecutive period or any other elected post in the 2015 elections. Member of Congress Carlos Kunkel, considered an 'ultra-Kirchnerite' said on Christmas that at the end of her mandate “Cristina will continue in politics”. However Cristina will apparently decide on the incumbent presidential candidate for 2015.

• Friday, December 27th 2013 - 00:05 UTC

  Over 10m Argentines live in poverty conditions, says Catholic University

  

  Over a quarter of the Argentine population live in poverty conditions, with no formal job, poor quality education, dreadful housing and insufficient healthcare, according to the latest paper from the Buenos Aires Catholic University Social Debt Observatory.

• Thursday, December 26th 2013 - 07:43 UTC

  Trickle-down economics in one of South America’s poorest countries, Paraguay

  

  The Economist has dedicated an article to the recently inaugurated Paraguayan president Horacio Cartes, and his attempts to improve the living conditions of the majority of a population which is poor in a country rich in agriculture and energy.