Latin America

• Tuesday, July 30th 2013 - 03:07 UTC

  Uruguay needs ‘a dollar at 25 Pesos’ if it wants to remain competitive warn economists

  

  Uruguay is too expensive in dollar terms and needs to adapt quickly because the adjustment will come anyway ‘and will be painful’ unless inflation is brought under control and costs equilibrium is reached with Brazil with a competitive dollar at 25 Pesos.

• Monday, July 29th 2013 - 06:18 UTC

  Colombia government and FARC resume peace negotiations despite armed clashes

  

  Colombian government and Marxist-inspired-drugs-funded FARC rebels resumed peace negotiations in Havana on Sunday after a recess of more than two weeks, during which 19 soldiers and a number of rebels were killed and rural protests left four farmers dead and several police injured.

• Monday, July 29th 2013 - 06:12 UTC

  Rousseff brushes aside a ‘Lula option for 2014’ and ratifies minister Mantega

  

  Responding to claims that former president Lula da Silva ‘is returning to politics’ and thus conditioning her re-election bid next year, Brazilian president Dilma Rousseff said the former trade union leader ‘never left politics’ and their relation ‘can’t be dissociated’. She also ratified Finance minister Guido Mantega.

• Monday, July 29th 2013 - 03:29 UTC

  Francis urges bishops to drop ‘princely attitudes’ and go out to the people (and save the Church)

  

  Pope Francis chided the Catholic hierarchy Sunday, telling regional bishops not to behave like authoritarian “princes” and urging them to move closer to the people.

• Monday, July 29th 2013 - 03:10 UTC

  ”Shake the church, go spread the word of God”, Francis tells 3 million at closing mass

  

  Pope Francis on the last day of his week long pilgrimage to Brazil urged Catholics to reject selfishness, hatred and intolerance to help build a new world.

• Saturday, July 27th 2013 - 20:21 UTC

  Cartes declines invitation from Rousseff to attend Pope Francis Sunday mass in Rio

  

  Paraguayan president-elect Horacio Cartes declined a personal invitation from his peer Dilma Rousseff to attend Francis mass on Sunday in Rio do Janeiro, the closing event of the pope’s visit to Brazil, according to one of his top foreign policy advisors.

• Saturday, July 27th 2013 - 20:16 UTC

  Raul Castro promises ‘gradual and orderly’ transfer of power to new generations

  

  The Cuban Revolution remains a movement of young people, President Raul Castro said on Friday during an event to mark the 60th anniversary of an attack on a military barracks which is considered the starting point of the uprising that brought it to power in 1959.

• Saturday, July 27th 2013 - 05:29 UTC

  Pope admits Church’s sins and calls on youth to change the world

  

  Pope Francis in yet another strong message said on Friday he understands the young people who lose faith in the church because of bad ministers, and confidence in political institutions because of corruption, but also urged them to change the world.

• Saturday, July 27th 2013 - 05:16 UTC

  Cristina Fernandez on campaign for October mid term elections hikes minimum wage 25.5%

  

  The minimum wage In Argentina will increase 25.5% to 3,600 Pesos, President Cristina Fernández announced. The hike will be implemented in two phases, with the lowest legal salary rising to 3,300 Pesos as of August and 3,600 in January 2014.

• Friday, July 26th 2013 - 06:41 UTC

  Fifteen months ahead of presidential election, Uruguay’s ruling coalition continues to lead

  

  Fifteen months ahead of October 2014 presidential election, over 80% of Uruguayans are willing to reveal whom they will vote, ‘if elections were held next Sunday’, according to the latest public opinion poll from Cifra and released this week.