Mercosur

• Tuesday, September 28th 2004 - 21:00 UTC

  Britain to condone poor countries multilateral debts.

  Britain's Chancellor of the Exchequer George Brown promised this Monday in Brighton that UK will condone the world's poorest countries debt with the World Bank.

• Tuesday, September 28th 2004 - 21:00 UTC

  Stiglitz blasts G-8 and IMF “democratic deficit”

  US economist and Nobel Prize winner Joseph Stiglitz demanded an urgent review of multilateral organizations such as the International Monetary Fund, IMF, World Bank and particularly the G-8 given their lack of legitimacy which impedes the development of a “true global democracy”.

• Tuesday, September 28th 2004 - 21:00 UTC

  Preparing for a 60 US dollars oil barrel.

  World oil prices reached fresh records on Monday with US light crude poised to break 50 US dollars per barrel (U$S 49,64) following mounting fears about oil supply given growing tensions in Nigeria and the Middle East.

• Monday, September 27th 2004 - 21:00 UTC

  Combined air exercises in northern Chile.

  Combat aircrafts from Argentina, Brazil, United States and Chile began this weekend joint strategic air exercises in the area of Iquique, northern Chile, approximately 2,000 kilometres from Santiago.

• Monday, September 27th 2004 - 21:00 UTC

  Mercosur-EU talks deadline in doubt

  The European Union and Mercosur have yet to exchange their complete proposals for the trade agreement currently under negotiation between the two blocks, according to European Commission sources in Brussels.

• Monday, September 27th 2004 - 21:00 UTC

  Argentine fisheries exports forecasted to drop 30%.

  Argentine fisheries exports this year are forecasted to drop 30% compared to 2003 because of the poor squid and shrimp catches, according to the latest reports released by the Argentine Fisheries Department. Last year total fisheries exports totalled 885 million US dollars.

• Monday, September 27th 2004 - 21:00 UTC

  APEC tourism summit in Punta Arenas confirmed.

  Eighteen out of 21 Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation member economies have confirmed they will be participating in the Tourism Ministers summit scheduled in Punta Arenas next October 13/14.

• Monday, September 27th 2004 - 21:00 UTC

  Montevideo, one of the cheapest in South America.

  A report from Mercer Human Resources Consulting, MHRC, indicates that Montevideo has become the second cheapest capital in South America and is even below some of the main cities in Central America.

• Monday, September 27th 2004 - 21:00 UTC

  Brazil closer to achieving oil self production.

  In spite of some delays in the construction by US contractors of oil rigs, Brazil government owned oil company Petrobras expects to reach a record production of 1,74 million barrels per day in the coming quarter, according to industry sources.

• Saturday, September 25th 2004 - 21:00 UTC

  Patagonia:
  Acting sheepish.

  Sheep are the movers and shakers in Patagonia. Indigenous tribes and gauchos have been massacred to make space for them; beautiful wild mammals such as guanacos and pumas have been enclosed to free up the grasses; and you can even link Britain's claim on the Falklands to sheep quarantining in the 19th century.