Latin America

• Monday, January 14th 2013 - 06:58 UTC

  Chavez health ‘improving’; top Venezuelan officials meet in Havana with Raul Castro

  

  Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez's lung infection has been controlled and his medical state is improving, the government announced on Sunday while four of the most powerful figures gathered in Havana allegedly to report to the cancer-stricken leader and meet with Cuban allies.

• Monday, January 14th 2013 - 06:38 UTC

  Major victory for President Morales: UN accepts “coca leaf chewing” in Bolivia

  

  Bolivia will again belong to the 1961 Single Convention on Narcotic Drugs after its bid to rejoin with a reservation that it does not accept the treaty’s requirement that “coca leaf chewing must be banned” was successful Friday. Opponents needed one-third of the 184 signatory countries to object, but fell far, far short despite objections by the US and the International Narcotics Control Board.

• Monday, January 14th 2013 - 03:53 UTC

  “Where is the reconstruction money?” asks Haiti on third anniversary of devastating quake

  

  Three years after a massive earthquake ravaged Haiti, President Michel Martelly said on Saturday his country was slowly rebuilding, despite the ongoing day-to-day misery of many survivors and the still to be honoured promises of international aid and donations.

• Monday, January 14th 2013 - 03:28 UTC

  Cubans a little bit more free: restrictions on overseas travel relaxed after 50 years

  

  After over half a century, Cuba's new immigration rules that will take effect on January 14 will relax overseas travel restrictions, Havana authorities said. From Tuesday Cubans intending to travel can apply for a passport without the need to present a government permit, known as the White Card, or an invitation letter from abroad, two prior requisites that made travel planning more onerous, according to Cuba's immigration bureau (IND).

• Saturday, January 12th 2013 - 18:57 UTC

  P&O cruise line suspends stops in Argentina, confirms calls in the Falklands

  

  British cruise line operator P&O has scrapped stops in Argentina because of continuing tensions with the country over the Falkland Islands. Two of its vessels will no longer dock at three Argentine port destinations on around-the-world cruises. The decision was taken because there was no guarantee they will be able to dock.

• Saturday, January 12th 2013 - 18:26 UTC

  Bluefin tuna opens 2013 with record auction price at Tsukiji: 1.78 million dollars

  

  The price of premium “Oma” bluefin tunas has reached a new record: JPY 155.4 million or 1.78 million dollars, in the first auction of 2013 at Tokyo's Tsukiji Fish market, compared to JPY 56.49 million (640.696 dollars) in the first auction of 2012.

• Saturday, January 12th 2013 - 18:18 UTC

  Chilean fish exports total 3.8bn in ten months; salmon the main item with 1.2bn

  

  Chilean exports of fishery products and aquaculture in the first 10 months of 2012 reached 3.8 billion dollars,1% over the same period in 2011. But the volume of exports increased 11.3%, according to the latest stats from Chile’s Fisheries and Aquaculture Under-Secretariat (Subpesca).

• Saturday, January 12th 2013 - 18:05 UTC

  Maduro administration bans four clips on postponement of Chavez inauguration

  

  Venezuela’s National Telecommunications Commission (Conatel) launched proceedings on 9 January against the terrestrial television station Globovisión over its broadcast of four clips about the postponement of the inauguration of President Hugo Chavez for a new six-year term, originally scheduled for the following day.

• Saturday, January 12th 2013 - 17:53 UTC

  Methanex Canada to idle plant in Punta Arenas because of insufficient gas provision

  

  Chilean Energy minister Jorge Bunster regretted on Friday Methanex Canada announcement on its decision to idle operations in Chile in March due to lack of adequate natural gas supply. The company stated that it does not have sufficient feedstock to keep the plant in operation given the natural gas supply challenges.

• Saturday, January 12th 2013 - 17:45 UTC

  Cristina Fernandez meets Chavez family and has lunch with the Castro brothers

  

  Argentine president Cristina Fernandez is flying Saturday to Emirates the first leg of a trade tour that includes the Far East after spending 24 hours in Cuba where she met the Castro brothers, visited the relatives of cancer-stricken President Hugo Chavez and late Friday held a mini summit with Venezuelan Vice president Nicolas Maduro and Peruvian head of state Ollanta Humala.