Mercosur

• Friday, November 12th 2004 - 20:00 UTC

  Brazilian businessmen criticize the Mercosur “anchor”.

  A group of Brazilian businessmen will request the Lula de Silva administration to step back from Mercosur, interrupting the customs union process, reported this Friday Roberto Gianetti da Fonseca, International Relations Director from the all powerful Sao Paulo Federation of Industries, FIESP.

• Thursday, November 11th 2004 - 20:00 UTC

  US basic rate climbs to 2% .

  The United States Federal Reserve Open Market Committee rose this Wednesday its key federal funds rate by 25 points to 2%, the fourth increase since last June. Although markets were expecting such a move it's the highest since November 2001 when the Fed stated to lower rates in an effort to contain the effects of an incipient recession and the impact of the 9/11 terrorist attacks.

• Thursday, November 11th 2004 - 20:00 UTC

  Chile's farm exports up 24% in nine months.

  Chile's agricultural and forestry exports totalled $5.67 billion US dollars during the first nine months of this year, a 24% over the same period in 2003, reported the Agriculture Studies and Policies Office, Odepa.

• Thursday, November 11th 2004 - 20:00 UTC

  ENAP profits in nine months: 145 million US dollars

  ENAP, Chile's government owned oil company managed a consolidated profit equivalent to 145,3 million US dollars during the first nine months of 2004, but because of the strong appreciation of the Chilean currency against the US dollar, profits were actually 28,5% less than in the same period of 2003 (203,3 million US dollars).

• Thursday, November 11th 2004 - 20:00 UTC

  “Educational gap” conditions Chile's growth

  Chilean Finance minister Nicolas Eyzaguirre forecasted that if Chile sustains the average 5,5% growth of the last fifteen years, per capita income will reach 20,000 US dollars by 2020, but he also warned about the unfair distribution of wealth and insufficient educational opportunities.

• Thursday, November 11th 2004 - 20:00 UTC

  Patagonia Mapuches reject Benetton offer.

  Indigenous mapuche communities in Argentine Patagonia rejected a donation of 2,500 hectares from the Benetton brothers arguing that the disputed lands are theirs by ancestral rights.

• Thursday, November 11th 2004 - 20:00 UTC

  Magallanes project to improve lambing and profits

  Thirty miles north of Punta Arenas, a private farm with support from the Chilean Development and Promotion Corporation is involved in a project to increase sheep farming profits basically by improving cross breeding and lambing.

• Thursday, November 11th 2004 - 20:00 UTC

  China's economy softly slowing, so far.

  China's industrial production slowed during October, a sign which was greeted with relief by Beijing authorities who are trying to take steam from the seventh world economy but the fastest growing.

• Thursday, November 11th 2004 - 20:00 UTC

  New record low for the US dollar against the Euro.

  The US dollar dropped Wednesday to a new record low breaking the 1,30 benchmark with no immediate prospects of a rebound according to European analysts who fear US trade and fiscal imbalances and have doubts about the strength of the economy's recovery.

• Thursday, November 11th 2004 - 20:00 UTC

  Latin America quick to dance to China's tune.

  Perspectives on China's growing links with Latin America highlighted by this week's visit to the region of Chinese president Hu Jintao could not be more different