Politics

• Friday, April 22nd 2011 - 04:51 UTC

  Piñera accused of conflict of interest in Patagonian coal mine approval

  

  Leading figures in Chile’s government were caught up in conflict of interest charges this week, with opposition Dep. Enrique Accorsi accusing President Sebastián Piñera and several of his cabinet ministers of “serious conflicts of interest” when they gave a green light to the Mina Invierno coal mine on Isla Riesco.

• Friday, April 22nd 2011 - 04:48 UTC

  Car companies comply with Argentina’s import/export balance policy

  

  Argentina reached an agreement with the French conglomerate Peugeot-Citroen and the importers of Italy’s Alfa Romeo, to balance imports-exports value, following on Argentina’s latest regulations for the country’s auto industry.

• Thursday, April 21st 2011 - 06:59 UTC

  Where’s the new blood? Cuban reforms to be implemented by the old guard

  

  Cuba's Communist Party selected President Raúl Castro and hard-liners from the old guard to steer wide-ranging reforms of the island's crumbling economy. As expected, Raúl Castro, 79, was chosen at a four-day party congress to replace his older brother Fidel Castro as first secretary of the ruling party's Central Committee.

• Thursday, April 21st 2011 - 06:57 UTC

  IMF says the US lacks a credible plan to cut its deficit in the mid term

  

  The United States lacks a credible plan to cut its deficit over the medium term, the International Monetary Fund's chief economist Olivier Blanchard told French daily Le Monde in an interview published Wednesday.

• Thursday, April 21st 2011 - 06:54 UTC

  WTO Lamy launches ‘confessionals’ of hope to try and salvage the Doha Round

  

  Pascal Lamy head of the World Trade Organization is holding talks to try and salvage the ailing Doha Round of trade liberalization talks that have been stalled for almost a decade.

• Thursday, April 21st 2011 - 06:31 UTC

  Tax revenue in Brazil surges 9.7% in March on the back of consumer demand

  

  Brazil's tax revenue surged in March on the back of consumer demand that has continued to be robust the federal tax authority said this week.

• Thursday, April 21st 2011 - 06:28 UTC

  Chile and Argentina working to complement their power grids

  

  Chile is studying supplying neighbouring Argentina with electricity during the southern hemisphere's summer, when demand spikes, daily newspaper La Tercera reported Wednesday.

• Thursday, April 21st 2011 - 06:25 UTC

  Inflation and unemployment confirm Brazilian economy overheated

  

  March inflation in Brazil accelerated to its fastest rate since November 2008, driven by food, beverages and fuel prices. Consumer prices as measured by the IPCA-15 index rose 6.44% in the year through mid-April, the national statistics agency announced Wednesday in Rio do Janeiro.

• Thursday, April 21st 2011 - 06:18 UTC

  Syria lifts 50 year emergency rule but permission is needed for demonstrations

  

  The Syrian authorities' arrest of a leftist opposition figure overnight suggests that a bill passed by the government to end emergency rule after 48 years will not halt repression, rights campaigners said.

• Thursday, April 21st 2011 - 03:20 UTC

  Chile looking for a new icebreaker to strengthen presence in Antarctica

  

  The Chilean Navy icebreaker is scheduled to be decommissioned in four years time so “we are in the task of considering a replacement” revealed Third Naval Zone Commander Rear Admiral Rafael Gonzalez during a press conference in Punta Arenas to review results of the last Antarctic season.