Politics

• Wednesday, July 14th 2010 - 01:59 UTC

  Lula da Silva opens bid for a bullet train on time for the 2016 Summer Olympics

  

  Brazilian President Lula da Silva launched Tuesday the bidding process for the construction of the high-speed rail service between the country’s two largest cities, Sao Paulo and Rio do Janeiro, which should be running by 2016 when Brazil hosts the Olympic Games.

• Wednesday, July 14th 2010 - 00:59 UTC

  Brazil/EU summit to follow up the resumed negotiations with Mercosur

  

  The recent resumption of negotiations for a cooperation and free trade agreement between Mercosur and the European Union will be at the heart of the EU/Brazil summit scheduled to begin Wednesday in Brasilia.

• Tuesday, July 13th 2010 - 21:23 UTC

  Chile and Bolivia meet in La Paz to discuss maritime dispute

  

  Chilean and Bolivian Foreign Ministers gathered in La Paz, Bolivia on Monday to discuss resolving a decades-old maritime dispute.

• Tuesday, July 13th 2010 - 06:44 UTC

  Mrs. Kirchner praises China and calls for new world financial system

  

  Argentine President Cristina Kirchner called on Monday for an international system of financial regulation ahead of the G20's next meeting in Seoul.

• Tuesday, July 13th 2010 - 06:40 UTC

  Chile clears minefields in Magallanes Region and Tierra del Fuego

  

  Chile will announce this week that the extreme south of the country, in areas next to the border with Argentina, is free of antipersonnel mines. Chilean authorities consider this a major step to comply with the 2016 Ottawa convention timetable.

• Tuesday, July 13th 2010 - 06:32 UTC

  “Vuvuzela” has been voted the word of the World Cup

  

  Vuvuzela” has been voted the word of the World Cup by global linguists who said Monday the tournament will be best remember for the name of South Africa's deafening trumpet.

• Tuesday, July 13th 2010 - 06:27 UTC

  Colombian sales to Venezuela plummet 70%, but record year for overall exports

  

  Colombian exports to Venezuela totalled 652 million US dollars between January and May 2010, showing a 71.4% fall compared with the first five months of 2009, reports Colombia's Department of Statistics (DANE).

• Monday, July 12th 2010 - 03:55 UTC

  Cheering “Viva España”, “Soy español” millions take to the streets to celebrate

  

  Spontaneous celebrations erupted across Spain on Sunday after the national football team won its first World Cup when Andres Iniesta scored an extra-time goal in a 1-0 wins over the Netherlands at Soccer City, Johannesburg.

• Monday, July 12th 2010 - 03:52 UTC

  Argentina and Venezuela with highest (and climbing) inflation in South America

  

  While most of South America is undergoing a deceleration of consumer prices Argentina and Venezuela are the only countries to experience a significant increase in inflation, making it one of the main concerns or public opinion.

• Monday, July 12th 2010 - 03:04 UTC

  Mrs. Kirchner in China to try and reopen the soy-oil market

  

  Argentine president Cristina Fernández de Kirchner arrived Sunday in Beijing with a delegation of 70 businessmen and an agenda concentrated on trade issues including one which is fundamental for Argentina, the resumption of soy-oil sales to China which have been banned for several months.