Latin America

• Saturday, December 15th 2012 - 20:56 UTC

  Peru and Chile sign next week ‘free of mines’ designated areas along their border

  

  Next week Chile and Peru will have concluded sweeping their border of anti personnel and anti tank mines, announced Claudio de la Puente, head of the Latin American Desk at the Peruvian Foreign ministry.

• Saturday, December 15th 2012 - 06:31 UTC

  Mexico ready to drop WTO complaint after reaching auto accord with Argentina

  

  Mexico said it would drop a complaint over import curbs against Argentina before the World Trade Organization after the two countries signed a more limited automobile trade pact.

• Friday, December 14th 2012 - 20:43 UTC

  IMF praises Chile as one of the most stable and prosperous nations in the region

  

  IMF Managing Director Christine Lagarde described Chile as one the most stable and prosperous nations in South America which has enjoyed robust growth over the last decade, but also warned it remains exposed to shifts in commodity prices.

• Friday, December 14th 2012 - 07:46 UTC

  Paraguay blasts Mercosur and Argentina and calls to follow ‘Chile’s example’

  

  Paraguay’s industrial union, UIP, lashed at Mercosur over the incorporation of Venezuela as a full member and Argentina’s reiterated lack of respect for signed agreements and understandings.

• Friday, December 14th 2012 - 07:42 UTC

  Uruguayan economy expands 3% in third quarter boosted by construction of pulp mill

  

  Uruguay’s economy grew faster than economists expected in the third quarter, spurred by increased construction, transportation and communications activity. GDP expanded 3% from a year earlier, the central bank said on Thursday on its website. The economy grew 1.2 percent from the second quarter, the bank said.

• Friday, December 14th 2012 - 07:30 UTC

  IMF expected to delay action on Argentina on stats dispute until mid January

  

  The IMF said Thursday that it was unlikely to take action on Argentina failure to supply accurate statistical data before January, if the country misses a deadline next Monday.

• Friday, December 14th 2012 - 04:45 UTC

  ‘Argentina’s behaviour’ main obstacle for EU/Mercosur trade talks says Brussels

  

  The European Union Trade Commissioner openly accused “Argentina’s behaviour” as the main obstacle in discussions to advance and reach a free trade agreement with Mercosur.

• Thursday, December 13th 2012 - 22:57 UTC

  Chavez in critical condition with three months to live, says Venezuelan doctor

  

  Venezuelan doctor Jose Rafael Marquina, who is based in the US and is known for his accurate prognoses on President Hugo Chavez’s health, told a local Florida radio that the Venezuelan leader Chavez has “between two and three months to live”.

• Thursday, December 13th 2012 - 07:12 UTC

  Panama files dispute before WTO against Argentina’s trade restrictions

  

  Panama filed a dispute against Argentina at the World Trade Organization on Wednesday alleging the government of President Cristina Fernandez had broken WTO rules by discriminating against imports of goods and services.

• Wednesday, December 12th 2012 - 19:34 UTC

  Uruguay’s fiscal and salaries policies out of control plus heterodox ‘solutions’ rumours

  

  Uruguay has “politicized the management of its economy” with the government letting the “trade unions and its political allies” master the country’s budget and the salaries policy, claimed Ernesto Talvi a conservative economist from the local think-tank CERES who is also a World Bank consultant.