
Fitch Ratings forecasts Latin American economies will rebound this year from the 2020 recession but risks remain in particular because of the evolution of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Norwegian oil and gas exploration seismic data company PGS has signed an agreement with Uruguay's state oil company ANCAP to reprocess over 11 000 km of existing 2D lines of various vintages, applying the latest seismic imaging techniques.

Portugal which last week took the rotating presidency of the European Union for six months as of January 1st, said that it will try to conclude the bloc’s free trade agreement with Mercosur, agreed in 2019 after two decades of negotiations that have not yet been finalized.

Analysis by the United States Department of Agriculture’s Foreign Agricultural Service (FAS / USDA) point out that the country has US$ 4 billion in agricultural exports that may be affected to some extent by the trade agreement between the European Union and Mercosur. The agreement has yet to be ratified by national parliaments.

Brazil has reduced import taxes and tariffs to zero for products used to combat Covid-19, including syringes and needles classified under codes 9018.31.11, 9018.31.19, 9018.31.90, 9018.32.19, and 9018.39.10 of the Mercosur Common Nomenclature. The products are included in the list of temporary tariff reductions covered by Gecex (Executive Management Committee of the Chamber of Foreign Trade), Resolution 17, from 17 March 2020.

Uruguay announced on Wednesday a raft of new measures to help contain the growing number of Covid-19 positive cases which if sustained could strain hospital and sanitary capacities.

Dry weather across some of the major producing regions in South America is putting upward pressure on corn and soybean prices at the start the new year. Dryness is expected to continue through the short term across southern Brazil and especially in the main-producing states in Argentina.

Argentina is holding the pro tempore rotating chair of Mercosur during the next six months and three are its main objectives during that period according to foreign ministry sources in Buenos Aires. They include Bolivia, the Falklands/Malvinas claim and trade accords and negotiations with other countries.

Mercosur countries will address environmental concerns raised by the European Union that have stalled ratification of a free trade deal between the two trade blocs, Argentina’s foreign minister said on Monday.

Distrust in Europe of Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro's government is holding up ratification of a trade deal between the European Union and Mercosur, the EU ambassador to Brasilia said.