
President-Elect Barack Obama will on Monday formally nominate his former rival Hillary Clinton as Secretary of State when he unveils his heavyweight national security team that has been welcomed by Republicans and military officers for its conservativeness and experience.

SPANISH citizen Rogelio Curras Pastoriza has been charged with an offence in relation to the loss of drugs from the police cell at Stanley Police Station in the Falkland Islands.

As was anticipated Mercosur senior members Argentina and Brazil proposed Friday an increase of the common external tariff, (AEC) for certain products, and as was expected junior members Uruguay and Paraguay rejected the idea.
Although Chile is considered the market with the most favourable environment for business, only two out of ten Spanish corporations consider it a priority and focus their efforts in Brazil, Mexico and Argentina.

Mercosur member Argentina is again expected to propose an increase in the common external tariff (AEC) for textiles, leather goods, wood and furniture plus other manufactured produce with the purpose of protecting domestic production.

The US government will guarantee $306bn of Citigroup's problem mortgages and other assets, and will also give the banking giant a $20bn cash injection after a collapse in its share price.

NORTH Falkland Basin oil and gas exploration company Rockhopper Exploration have announced prospects of over four billion barrels of oil and gas.

The president of the Standing Committee of Mercosur representatives said he feels frustrated with the workings of the South American trade group and proposes drastic changes since in the current global circumstances integration advances in the region could even turn negative.

Asean and Mercosur representatives are meeting Monday in Brasilia to explore new venues of promoting trade and investments according to a release from the Brazilian Foreign Affairs ministry. This is the first time the two blocks as such meet.

Barack Obama, the US president-elect, has ordered his advisers to produce an economic recovery plan aimed at creating 2.5 million new jobs across the country over the next two years.