Mercosur

• Monday, July 5th 2004 - 21:00 UTC

  IMF expects “progress” in discussions with Argentina.

  The International Monetary Fund, IMF, expects a significant advance in discussions to complete the third review of the program with Argentina, said IMF Managing Director Rodrigo Rato during a forum in Paris.

• Monday, July 5th 2004 - 21:00 UTC

  Good news, bad news.

  Good news and bad news for Magallanes Region, according to the latest official release it has the lowest unemployment rate in Chile but it's second in Tuberculosis cases in the country.

• Monday, July 5th 2004 - 21:00 UTC

  Lan renews students' special fares.

  For a third consecutive year Lan last week renewed the accord with the Grouping of Magallanes Families of Students which contemplates rebates and other travel benefits for local students who in higher education in other regions of Chile.

• Sunday, July 4th 2004 - 21:00 UTC

  Eight die, 40,000 suffer damages in Patagonia storm

  Eight people died and some 40.000 people suffered damages from storms pounding southern Argentina and Chile with torrential rains and heavy snow.

• Sunday, July 4th 2004 - 21:00 UTC

  Joint UK-Argentine naval exercises?

  The Argentine Navy is looking forward to holding naval exercises with the Royal Navy in the South Atlantic, according to the Buenos Aires press.

• Sunday, July 4th 2004 - 21:00 UTC

  FAM: contained in Brazil; outbreak in Ecuador.

  Argentina lifted the ban on meat imports from fifteen Brazilian states, which was imposed June 23, following the outbreak of a foot and mouth disease case in the northern state of Para.

• Sunday, July 4th 2004 - 21:00 UTC

  UN observers request for US presidential election.

  Several United States Congressmen have requested United Nations observers to supervise the coming November 2 US presidential elections, confirmed the UN spokesperson.

• Friday, July 2nd 2004 - 21:00 UTC

  Euro zone interest rate unchanged at 2%.

  The European Central Bank decided this Thursday to leave interest rates unchanged at 2%, the lowest in half a century in the area. In its official release the ECB stated that:

• Thursday, July 1st 2004 - 21:00 UTC

  Federal Reserve raises interest rate to 1,25%.

  Stating that the “risks to the attainment of both sustainable growth and price stability for the next few quarters are roughly equal”, the United States Federal Reverse Open Market Committee announced this Wednesday, after two days of deliberation that it decided to raise its target for the federal funds rate by 25 points to 1,25%. Rates were at its lowest since 1958.

• Thursday, July 1st 2004 - 21:00 UTC

  Brazil's GDP expanded 2,7% in Q1.

  Brazil's GDP expanded 2,7% during the first quarter of 2004 compared to the first quarter of 2003 confirming the economic recovery tendency of the country's economy reports the Brazilian Geography and Statistics Institute, IBGE. According to IBGE, Brazil's GDP in the first quarter of 2004 reached 124,3 billion US dollars, that is 1,6% expansion over the last quarter of 2003.