
Chilean President Sebastian Piñera shuffled his cabinet to allow ministers with presidential aspirations to leave, as his embattled conservative coalition seeks support before presidential elections in November 2013.

According to the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC) and the International Labour Organization (ILO), labour markets in Latin America and the Caribbean were fairly resilient to the slowdown in the regional economy in the first half of 2012, which bodes well for a positive outcome in this year's employment and unemployment indicators.

Spain's NH Hoteles has received a preliminary offer from US private equity firm KKR to buy bonds that can be converted into shares of the debt-laden hotel chain. NH Hoteles, Europe's third largest business hotel operator based on rooms, has long been tipped as a private equity target given its large debt and that of its savings bank shareholders, which together own nearly a third of the firm.

US Hispanics are over 50 million according to the 2010 census and as the most important minority their influence could be decisive on Tuesday 6 November when the presidential and legislative election. Between the two censuses (2000/2010) Hispanics’ growth rate was four times the overall population rate.

Peruvian Ambassador to Buenos Aires, Nicolás Lynch, resigned to his post after he met with members of an organization suspected to be linked with guerrilla group Shining Path, the Peruvian Foreign Ministry informed.

Peru slashed its commercial fishing quota as warmer water temperatures and controversial practices deplete stocks of anchovy in one of the world’s richest fisheries. The government cut its quota for this summer’s anchovy season by 68% to 810.000 tons, the smallest allowance in 25 years.

Peru slammed reports that Movadef, the nascent political wing of the Shining Path armed group, had met with representatives of human rights groups in Argentina, including the Mothers of Plaza de Mayo Association, with the aim of gaining political credibility.

Peru is considering the anticipated cancelling of public debt to drain ‘dollars’ from the market and impede the sustained appreciation of the local currency, Sol, said Economy minister Luis Castilla. This would be the first step for a new liabilities management approach to extend in time the maturing of Peruvian bonds and other debt papers.

Mexico's president-elect, Enrique Peña Nieto, will present a tax reform bill during his first year in office, his top aide said on Tuesday, without providing any details on the plan.

The European Union issued on Wednesday its revised import preference scheme - known as the Generalised Scheme of Preferences (GSP) - for developing countries most in need which will take effect from 1 January 2014, revealing that all Mercosur full members, except for Paraguay, will no longer benefit.