Mercosur

• Saturday, September 2nd 2006 - 21:00 UTC

  Mexican president blocked from addressing Congress

  Mexican president Vicente Fox was prevented Friday from making his final state of the nation speech before Congress when over a hundred left wing legislators occupied the podium. This is the first time in the history of Mexico that a president is forced to cancel the ceremony.

• Saturday, September 2nd 2006 - 21:00 UTC

  Brazilian economy slowing but Lula da Silva optimistic

  Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva forecasted Friday the economy would expand 4% by the end of 2006 in spite of poor quarterly results.

• Saturday, September 2nd 2006 - 21:00 UTC

  Angela Merkel most powerful

  German Chancellor Angela Merkel has unseated US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice as the world's most powerful woman, according to a new ranking by Forbes magazine.

• Saturday, September 2nd 2006 - 21:00 UTC

  Chavez says opponents planning coup attempt

  Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez yesterday said he has uncovered a plot to topple his government, blaming his political opponents and calling them ??lackeys'' of the United States.

• Friday, September 1st 2006 - 21:00 UTC

  Chile to eat Argentine beef again

  Chilean minister of agriculture, Alvaro Rojas, confirmed last week that from September 1 he will lift the ban on Argentine beef imports that have weighed heavily on rancher's profits.

• Friday, September 1st 2006 - 21:00 UTC

  Soccer hits Brazilian growth

  Brazil's economy expanded less than anticipated in the second quarter as workers across the nation headed home early to watch the country's soccer team play in the month long World Cup, the government said yesterday.

• Friday, September 1st 2006 - 21:00 UTC

  US, Cuba good weather companions

  The US and Cuban governments avoid talking politics or religion, but as with every strained relationship, the weather is usually a safe topic.

• Friday, September 1st 2006 - 21:00 UTC

  Mine strike in Chile ends

  A strike that roiled world copper markets has come to an end, as workers at La Escondida mine in Chile voted to end their 25-day strike.

• Thursday, August 31st 2006 - 21:00 UTC

  Brazil sells China 100 mid sized commercial aircrafts

  Brazilian aircraft manufacturer Embraer announced Wednesday in Sao Paulo the sale to China of 100 commercial planes, totalling a 2.7 billion US dollars contract.

• Thursday, August 31st 2006 - 21:00 UTC

  Ex-Argentina leader testifies at trial

  The first civilian president after Argentina's dictatorship ended in 1983 defended his administration's amnesty laws while testifying at a human rights trial, but said he felt relieved when the laws were overturned.