Latin America

• Thursday, January 24th 2013 - 08:08 UTC

  Ashton praises Peru for its inclusion policy and fighting child malnutrition

  

  The European Union’s High Representative for Foreign Affairs, Catherine Ashton, highlighted the “important role that Peru is playing in the Latinamerican region,” assuring that Peru will participate “very constructively” in the EU-CELAC (Community of Latin American and Caribbean States) summit, in Santiago de Chile, on 26-27 January.

• Thursday, January 24th 2013 - 05:58 UTC

  LatinFocus forecasts regional GDP to expand 3.7% and average inflation 6.6%

  

  LatinFocus Consensus Forecast panellists expect regional GDP to expand 3.7% this year, following an estimated 2.9% increase recorded in 2012. The stable figure reflects rosier prospects for Chile, Paraguay, Peru and Venezuela, which were offset by downward revisions to Brazil, Colombia and Uruguay.

• Thursday, January 24th 2013 - 01:14 UTC

  Brazilian industry claims Mercosur is ‘paralyzed’ and blasts Argentina’s ‘illegal barriers’ on trade

  

  Brazil’s powerful manufacturers’ lobby openly criticized the “illegal barriers” imposed by the government of President Cristina Fernandez on Brazilian produce, and also lashed at President Dilma Rousseff for her administration’s “permissive attitude” towards Buenos Aires, a position that has “paralyzed Mercosur”.

• Thursday, January 24th 2013 - 00:25 UTC

  For Santander bank, “Brazil is the most important country in the world”

  

  Banco Santander chairman Emilio Botin denied this week that he is selling his company’s assets in Brazil and said his bank is only interested in “buying” in Latinamerica’s leading economy.

• Wednesday, January 23rd 2013 - 23:58 UTC

  EU wooing Latinamerica that is focused on China, now its leading trade partner

  

  Several European leaders among which the president of the European Council Herman Van Rompuy and the head of EU diplomacy Catherine Ashton are touring several Latinamerican countries with the purpose of strengthening relations with a region in full development but which lately has been increasingly focused on China.

• Wednesday, January 23rd 2013 - 09:27 UTC

  Climate change devouring Andean glaciers and source of fresh water for millions

  

  Climate change has shrunk Andean glaciers between 30% and 50% since the 1970s and could melt many of them away altogether in coming years, according to a study published on Tuesday in the journal Cryosphere.

• Wednesday, January 23rd 2013 - 08:24 UTC

  Piñera prepared to grant constitutional recognition to Chile’s indigenous groups

  

  Chilean President Sebastian Piñera pledged to work with “maximum urgency” on a bill that would grant constitutional recognition to the country's indigenous groups. Piñera also announced the creation of an indigenous peoples' council that fully represents “their history, traditions, culture” and via which “they could raise their strong and clear voice about their future.”

• Tuesday, January 22nd 2013 - 20:52 UTC

  HMS Protector rescues cruise liner at risk of becoming trapped in Antarctica ice

  

  A Norwegian cruise liner at risk of becoming trapped in thick ice off the coast of Antarctica was guided to safety by the Royal Navy in a two-hour operation, an incident which occurred a week ago and has only emerged.

• Tuesday, January 22nd 2013 - 19:54 UTC

  The Falklands people decision in March should be the final word

  

  One of the leading New Zealand newspapers, The Dominion Post, has addressed the issue of the Falklands, the dispute with Argentina and the coming March referendum in an editorial “Islanders should decide their destiny”, which we kindly reproduce.

• Tuesday, January 22nd 2013 - 18:29 UTC

  UN Latam economic commission publishes Yearbook with updated stats on the region

  

  In Latin America and the Caribbean 94% of primary-school age children attended school, but the figure was down to 75% for secondary level of education. Likewise the average number of people on technical or university courses was three times higher in the richest quintile than in the poorest quintile, according to data collected by the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC).