Politics

• Friday, May 18th 2012 - 16:43 UTC

  JPMorgan admits billions of losses from flawed trading strategy with derivatives

  

  The US mega-bank JPMorgan Chase & Co loss from derivatives trading may widen to 5 billion dollars, the Wall Street Journal reported on Friday. CEO Jamie Dimon personally approved the strategy that led to the trades, without monitoring how they were executed, the newspaper said.

• Friday, May 18th 2012 - 16:36 UTC

  “Let’s face it: the old (economic) model is broken: we need to create a new one”

  

  United Nations senior officials stressed the importance of establishing a new paradigm for growth that ensures social inclusiveness, job opportunities for all, and more accountability from the financial sector to tackle the ongoing global economic crisis.

• Friday, May 18th 2012 - 09:39 UTC

  Brazil closely following events in Venezuela because of Chavez condition

  

  Brazilian Foreign Affairs minister Antonio Patriota revealed that Brasilia is following closely the situation in Venezuela because of the medical condition of President Hugo Chavez, to whom he sent a message of quick recovery.

• Friday, May 18th 2012 - 09:24 UTC

  Chile leaves basic rate unchanged at 5% for the fourth month running

  

  Chile’s central bank kept its key interest rate unchanged at 5% for a fourth consecutive month as surging domestic demand and deterioration in the global economy leave little scope to change monetary policy.

• Friday, May 18th 2012 - 09:09 UTC

  Argentine president in Angola to promote trade and exchange food for oil

  

  Argentine President Cristina Fernández is on a three-day visit to Angola to promote trade and investments particularly exchanging food for the African country’s oil. Friday morning she is scheduled to meet her counterpart Jose Eduardo Dos Santos.

• Friday, May 18th 2012 - 09:05 UTC

  Argentina has a Jewish president for two days, Beatriz Rojkes

  

  For the first time, Argentina has a Jewish president, at least temporarily. Beatriz Rojkes, the provisional president of the Argentine Senate, is in charge of the government for several days because both President Christina Fernandez and Vice-President Amado Boudou are overseas.

• Friday, May 18th 2012 - 04:12 UTC

  YPF second shareholder misses 400 million dollars payment to creditor banks

  

  Argentina's Petersen Group missed a 400 million dollars payment to creditor banks on Wednesday, which could allow them to seize the shares of oil company YPF backing the loan.

• Friday, May 18th 2012 - 04:10 UTC

  Brazil’s Supreme Court confirms university quota system for Afro-descendents

  

  Brazil’s Supreme Court voted unanimously to permit a quota system that would favour Afro-descendants in entering universities, ending an eight-year legal battle.

• Friday, May 18th 2012 - 03:58 UTC

  Brazil passes bill to challenge embedded culture of secrecy and bureaucracy

  

  A freedom of information law has taken effect in Brazil, challenging an embedded culture of secrecy and bureaucracy. Proponents, including President Dilma Rousseff, said the measure is nothing short of a revolution for a system that has kept tight control over information for decades.

• Friday, May 18th 2012 - 03:01 UTC

  Argentine farmers blitz stops lawmakers vote on land tax increase

  

  A last-minute lobbying blitz by farmers in Argentina's top grains-producing province stopped lawmakers from approving a tax increase that some growers said would force them to sell their fields.