Mercosur

• Monday, June 21st 2004 - 21:00 UTC

  Rio Turbio: 14 mines killed in coal mine.

  Rescue brigades found the bodies of yet two more Argentine miners which remained reported as disappeared in the recent fire and collapse of several galleries at the Rio Turbio coal mine in southern Argentine Patagonia.

• Monday, June 21st 2004 - 21:00 UTC

  Mexico may increase oil export.

  Mexico's new energy secretary, Fernando Elizondo, says his country may increase oil exports by 100,000 barrels per day (bpd) later in the year to help stabilize international prices “Mexico agrees with the policy of stabilizing international prices, and so will contribute, within the limits of its production capacity, to the goal of increasing global production so as to achieve stability,” Elizondo told the press.

• Monday, June 21st 2004 - 21:00 UTC

  Kidnapping “industry” boom in Argentina.

  Kidnapping has become a booming industry in Argentina with a 565% jump in the last two years reports Buenos Aires city daily Clarin.

• Monday, June 21st 2004 - 21:00 UTC

  Uruguay bans Peruvian wool because of FAM.

  Uruguay banned the import of wool from Peru, where last week an outbreak of foot and mouth, FAM, disease was reported.

• Monday, June 21st 2004 - 21:00 UTC

  Chile close spying incident.

  Three Chilean military that last November were caught red-handed spying in the Punta Arenas Argentine consulate were ceased by the Chilean Army according to reports from the local press.

• Saturday, June 19th 2004 - 21:00 UTC

  C-24 calls for resumption of sovereignty talks.

  The United Nations Special Committee on Decolonization, C-24, this Friday morning adopted without a vote a draft resolution on the question of the Falkland Islands (Malvinas), requesting the Governments of Argentina and the United Kingdom to resume as soon as possible a peaceful solution to the sovereignty dispute over the Falkland Islands (Malvinas).

• Friday, June 18th 2004 - 21:00 UTC

  Patagonia Tourism workshop in Punta Arenas.

  Over 340 Chilean tourist and travel agencies, mainly from Santiago, converged this week on Punta Arenas for a Patagonia promotion workshop.

• Friday, June 18th 2004 - 21:00 UTC

  Energy crisis looms over China.

  China's industrial production in May grew at a lesser pace, the lowest in seven months although still an extraordinary annualized 17,5%. In April the index was 19,1%.

• Friday, June 18th 2004 - 21:00 UTC

  Greenspan continues until 2006.

  The United States Senate this Thursday confirmed, by acclamation, Alan Greenspan as Chairman of the Federal Reserve for a fifth consecutive mandate.

• Friday, June 18th 2004 - 21:00 UTC

  FAM in northern Brazil.

  The Brazilian Ministry of Agriculture reported this Thursday the outbreak of foot and mouth disease, FAM, in a farm in the northern state of Pará, the first since 2001.