Latin America

• Wednesday, January 8th 2014 - 05:19 UTC

  Panama Canal and construction companies closer to understanding on over-costs

  

  Panama Canal officials offered Tuesday to share the burden in a 283 million dollars fund to end a spat with a consortium threatening to halt the waterway's expansion over huge cost overruns. The proposal came after two days of intense talks under mediation of a Spanish cabinet minister who flew to Panama City for emergency meetings aimed at preventing a shutdown of the major project.

• Tuesday, January 7th 2014 - 06:05 UTC

  For second year running Uruguay manages deflation in December, keeps inflation in one digit

  

  Uruguay again managed a December with deflation, (as happened exactly a year ago) with the consumer prices index down 0.72%, helping to bring 2013 inflation to 8.52%, according to the official stats office, INE. This is the sixth year in the last ten that Uruguay despite an unprecedented decade long growth-boom and abundant revenue overshoots its inflation target.

• Monday, January 6th 2014 - 19:42 UTC

  Uruguayan minister says trade relations with Argentina “will never be the same”

  

  Industry, Energy and Mining Minister, Roberto Kreimerman, said Uruguay would try to settle disputes with Argentina in order to reestablish trade relations, but he also recognized Uruguay’s relationship with Argentina 'will never be the same'. The minister revealed that 32 million dollars of Uruguayan exports are blocked at Argentine Customs.

• Monday, January 6th 2014 - 06:57 UTC

  Ballot test this year in Latam: Brazil, Colombia, Bolivia, Uruguay, Panama, Costa Rica and El Salvador

  

  Seven out of 19 Latin-American countries will be holding elections this year and in four of them, Brazil, Bolivia, El Salvador and Uruguay, left leaning catch-all coalitions will try to hold on to power. Likewise with two conservative governments, Colombia and Panama.

• Monday, January 6th 2014 - 06:48 UTC

  Brazilian opposition ready to present attractive, balanced presidential ticket

  

  Former Brazilian environment minister Marina Silva has agreed to run for vice president in October elections on the presidential ticket of Eduardo Campos, the governor of Brazil’s Pernambuco state, O'Globo newspaper reported. Silva, who will make her intention publicly known by mid-February, could announce her candidacy at a January 17 meeting of leaders of Campos’ Brazilian Socialist Party (PSB).

• Saturday, January 4th 2014 - 04:38 UTC

  Mantega releases crucial data to calm market anxiety about Brazil's accounts

  

  Brazil's Finance Minister Guido Mantega insisted on Friday that the government is keeping spending under control as he sought to calm anxiety about the deterioration of the government's accounts. The minister said the primary budget surplus, (excess of revenue over expenditure before debt payments) would be above the goal of 73 billion Brazilian Reais for 2013 (30.5bn dollars), equivalent to about 1.5% of gross domestic product.

• Friday, January 3rd 2014 - 23:05 UTC

  Spain steps in to try to resolve cost dispute over Panama Canal expansion

  

  Spain stepped in on Friday to try to resolve a cost dispute over the expansion of Panama's canal, which has triggered a sell-off in the shares of Sacyr SA, the Spanish builder leading the project. Spain's Public Works minister, Ana Pastor, and Sacyr Chairman Manuel Manrique are due to travel to Panama on the weekend, Panama's president, Ricardo Martinelli, said.

• Friday, January 3rd 2014 - 18:52 UTC

  Record exports in dollars for Uruguay in 2013, but prospects not so encouraging

  

  Uruguayan exports in 2013 increased 4.8% in value and reached a record 9,155 billion dollars with soybean the main item and China the leading trade partner. The data was released by the government export promotion organization Uruguay XXI, which sometimes is over optimistic.

• 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”.