
Argentine President Alberto Fernandez is in Italy, the first leg of his tour of Europe, which begins Friday with an official visit to Pope Francis, and Italian leadership, after which he will concentrate on trying to renegotiate the country's burdensome national debt.

When Britain leaves the European Union at midnight on Friday (Jan 31) the bloc loses the second-biggest net contributor to its budget, leaving a €12-billion (US$13-billion) hole in its finances.

Britain this Friday, 31 January ends almost half a century of integration with its closest neighbours and leaves the European Union, starting a new - but still uncertain - chapter in its long history.

Brazil’s government will submit a bill that would reduce public sector costs and benefits and make it easier to fire workers to Congress “in a week or two,” Economy Minister Paulo Guedes said on Thursday.

The U.S. government warned Americans not to travel to China as the death toll from a new coronavirus reached 213 on Friday and the World Health Organization (WHO) declared a global health emergency.

Brazilian state-run oil firm Petrobras said it has asked to withdraw its participation in a program certifying good governance and limited political interference in state companies set up by the Sao Paulo stock exchange.

Mexico’s economy contracted last year for the first time in a decade, data showed on Thursday, as businesses curbed investment due to concern over the economic management of President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador, and forecasts for 2020 are also weak.

A Mandarin speaking trade specialist has been appointed by the Brazilian Agriculture ministry to boost exports to China, the world’s largest commodities market. Larissa Wachholz, 36, who holds a masters degree from the Renmin University of China, was tapped in December by the Brazilian agriculture ministry to lead a trade unit dedicated to the Asian country, the first of its kind in Brazil.

Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro visited the Surgery wing of the Armed Forces hospital in Brasilia on Thursday night, leaving without speaking to reporters, with a source familiar with the matter saying the president had felt discomfort in his abdomen.

EU funding for British Overseas Territories organisations and the impact of Brexit on business and travel are all subjects covered in a Brexit update from the Minister for the Commonwealth, the UN and South Asia this week, according to the transcript published by the Falkland Islands weekly “Penguin News”.