Politics

• Monday, August 7th 2017 - 06:27 UTC

  Cristina Kirchner/Macri dispute Buenos Aires province Senate seat

  

  With less than a week to the Argentine primaries next Sunday to chose candidates for the October midterm election, the dispute in the province of Buenos Aires which concentrates 35% of the national electorate is particularly interesting as decisive since ex president Cristina Fernandez has good chances of winning the Senate bench.

• Sunday, August 6th 2017 - 11:58 UTC

  US unemployment drops to 4.3%, but hourly earnings remain flat

  

  The United States economy added a solid 209,000 jobs in July, exceeding economists’ estimates as the labor market shows few signs of slowing down. The unemployment rate last month fell to 4.3% from 4.4%, the Labor Department reported on Friday.

• Sunday, August 6th 2017 - 04:53 UTC

  UN, including Beijing., agrees tough sanctions on North Korea banning more than a third of the country's exports

  

  The United Nations Security Council approved tough new sanctions on North Korea on Saturday including a ban on coal and other exports totaling more than US$1 billion — a huge bite in its total exports, valued at US$3 billion last year. U.S. Ambassador Nikki Haley praised the new sanctions, telling council members after the vote that it is “the single largest economic package ever leveled against the North Korean regime.”

• Sunday, August 6th 2017 - 00:23 UTC

  Venezuela suspended indefinitely: “Without democracy, you can't be part of Mercosur”

  

  Mercosur foreign ministers meeting on Saturday in Brazil suspended Venezuela indefinitely for failing to uphold democratic norms amid an intensifying crackdown on dissent in the country. The bloc previously suspended Venezuela in December for failing to uphold commitments it made when it joined the group in 2012.

• Sunday, August 6th 2017 - 00:10 UTC

  Maduro's assembly sacks dissident attorney general; next target elected members of the Legislative

  

  The newly installed constitutional assembly ousted Venezuela's defiant chief prosecutor on Saturday, a sign that President Nicolas Maduro's embattled government intends to move swiftly against critics and consolidate power amid a fast-moving political crisis.

• Saturday, August 5th 2017 - 11:49 UTC

  Brexit will happen despite the “density of problems” says Juncker

  

  Brexit will still happen despite the UK becoming more aware of the “density of problems” during withdrawal negotiations, Jean-Claude Juncker has said. The European Commission president indicated he disagreed with the Maltese prime minister Joseph Muscat, who reportedly said last week he saw “hopeful signs” that “Brexit will not happen”.

• Saturday, August 5th 2017 - 08:21 UTC

  Ireland calls for “unique solutions” to preserve UK/EU relations after Brexit

  

  Irish Prime Minister Leo Varadkar has called for “unique solutions” to preserve the relationship between the UK and the European Union after Brexit. On his first official visit to Northern Ireland, he raised the possibility of a bilateral UK-EU customs union, and described Brexit as “the challenge of this generation”.

• Saturday, August 5th 2017 - 07:55 UTC

  Mercosur foreign ministers will discuss the Venezuela situation in Brazil

  

  Mercosur foreign ministers are scheduled to meet this Saturday in Sao Paulo to decide on to how to address latest events in Venezuela, the fifth member of the group which remains suspended, and so far has not replied to calls to cancel the constituent assembly procedure and attempt some form of dialogue with the political opposition.

• Saturday, August 5th 2017 - 06:54 UTC

  Standard Chartered moves European base to Frankfurt because of Brexit

  

  Standard Chartered is set to spend about US$20m to turn its Frankfurt office into a European base due to Brexit. The bank plans to create a subsidiary at its German branch to maintain access to the European market after Britain withdraws from the European Union.

• Friday, August 4th 2017 - 08:35 UTC

  Brexit uncertainty pounding the economy says Bank of England governor

  

  The governor of the Bank of England has warned that uncertainty over Brexit is already weighing on the economy. Mark Carney's comments came as the Bank voted to hold rates and cut growth forecasts. It edged this year's growth forecast down to 1.7% from its previous forecast of 1.9% made in May and also cut the forecast for 2018 from 1.7% to 1.6%.