Latin America

• Wednesday, April 29th 2015 - 22:48 UTC

  Uruguay insists Mercosur must achieve “a free trade zone which effectively works”

  

  Uruguay again complained about the current stalled situation of Mercosur and called for members to 'sincere' themselves regarding the compliance of the original 1991 founding charter, and hopefully “we can at least reach the first stage of the chronogram: a free trade zone which effectively works and has not to bear the brunt of hurdles”.

• Wednesday, April 29th 2015 - 08:40 UTC

  “Being Argentine, they thought I would call myself Jesus II” and not Francis

  

  After meeting Pope Francis at the Vatican on Tuesday, the president of Ecuador, Rafael Correa, told his two million Twitter followers that the pontiff had spoken enthusiastically about his coming visit to the country and had even told him a self-deprecating joke about the Argentines.

• Monday, April 27th 2015 - 22:48 UTC

  Paraguay and Uruguay ministers to discuss recovering paralyzed Mercosur

  

  Following on the lead of Uruguay's new government, Paraguay has also demanded Mercosur returns to its roots and original objective with free circulation of goods and no obstructions of any kind or impediments such as tariff barriers. The five countries group has been paralyzed and negotiations for an encompassing cooperation and trade agreement with the European Union remain stalled.

• Monday, April 27th 2015 - 21:29 UTC

  Giant 1.000 kilos manta ray caught by Peruvian fishermen

  

  A giant manta ray of approximately 1.000 kilos was caught by Peruvian unsuspecting fishermen operating at La Cruz inlet, north of the country close to the Ecuadorian border, according to Lima media. Erick Cruz Guerrero, 22 was the young crew member that finally captured the giant manta ray which had to be unloaded with a crane.

• Thursday, April 23rd 2015 - 09:34 UTC

  Vatican confirms Pope visit to Cuba on his trip to United States

  

  Leaders of Cuba's Catholic Church expressed joy Wednesday on learning that Pope Francis will visit the island in September amid the budding Vatican-mediated rapprochement between Havana and Washington. Francis will stop in Cuba before his Sept. 23 meeting in the United States with President Barack Obama.

• Thursday, April 23rd 2015 - 09:07 UTC

  NOAA Fisheries names three Latam countries in illegal fishing activities

  

  United States NOAA Fisheries (National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration) has released its 2015 Biennial Report to Congress highlighting U.S. findings and analyses of foreign illegal, unreported, and unregulated (IUU) fishing activities and of by-catch of protected species and shark catch on the high seas for foreign fleets.

• Wednesday, April 22nd 2015 - 06:03 UTC

  Understanding the drivers of prosperity in Latin America and the Caribbean

  

  A new World Bank Group report, “Shared Prosperity and Poverty Eradication in Latin America and the Caribbean”, explores the performance of eight countries to understand what has driven progress, and what it will take to sustain it.

• Tuesday, April 21st 2015 - 07:12 UTC

  New York governor and a large business delegation land in Havana

  

  Governor of New York Andrew Cuomo arrived in the Cuban capital on Monday heading a large delegation of business people interested in learning firsthand the Cuban reality and making contacts for future business endeavors. Cuomo was welcomed at the José Martí International Airport by Josefina Vidal, head of the USA desk at the Cuban Foreign Ministry.

• Tuesday, April 21st 2015 - 01:16 UTC

  World Bank warns Latin America about permanent slowdown in the absence of structural reform

  

  In its latest semiannual report, “Latin America Treads a Narrow Path to Growth: The Slowdown and its Macroeconomic Challenges,” the World Bank´s Office of the Chief Economist for Latin America and the Caribbean forecasts a fourth year of slow growth for the region.

• Monday, April 20th 2015 - 23:41 UTC

  Uruguay insists with the EU trade accord, even leaving Mercosur aside

  

  Uruguay's president Tabare Vazquez announced that when he meets with Brazil's Dilma Rousseff next month, they will consider as a priority how to get the Mercosur-European Union talks for a trade agreement rolling again.