Politics

• Thursday, December 19th 2013 - 05:41 UTC

  Euro-zone agrees on banking reform, another step towards banking union

  

  Euro-zone finance ministers have agreed on a long-awaited pact on how to deal with failing banks in the region. It aims to create a 55bn euro fund - financed by the banking industry, over the next 10 years. The fund would be backed by a new agency, which will decide on how to deal with failing banks.

• Wednesday, December 18th 2013 - 19:03 UTC

  Chilean congress rejects bill imposing harsher punishments for public disorder

  

  Chile's Lower house ended a two-year debate over the contentious ‘Hinzpeter Law’ aimed to impose stricter punishments for public disorder, but which critics argued it would also apply harsh penalties to peaceful protesters.

• Wednesday, December 18th 2013 - 17:49 UTC

  Falklands' budget challenge: how to distinguish recurrent funding from oil windfall income

  

  The Falkland Islands Executive Council, (EXCO), considers essential more public scrutiny to budget affairs discussions so that individuals can better understand what monies are available for ongoing funding and which are windfall incomes from oil related matters.

• Wednesday, December 18th 2013 - 16:46 UTC

  Falklands to cash 146m dollars from tax on farm-out deal in oil industry

  

  An agreement has been reached between the Falkland Islands government and Rockhopper Exploration regarding tax arising from the Sea Lion farm-out to Premier Oil, an operation involving a billion US dollars, and which according to the settlement generated a credit of 146m dollars for the Islands Treasury.

• Wednesday, December 18th 2013 - 07:15 UTC

  Heat wave in Argentina collapses power grid: thousands with no energy or water

  

  People out in the streets banging pots and pans, or protesting burning tires and garbage containers in powerless neighborhoods, while an estimated 30.000 businesses in Buenos Aires City and metropolitan area are organizing demanding compensation for losses suffered because of the collapse of the power distribution system overwhelmed by an extraordinary heat wave with temperatures in the high thirties and low forties.

• Wednesday, December 18th 2013 - 06:51 UTC

  Argentine mobile phone companies have to adjust rates and charge by the second

  

  Mobile phone companies operating in Argentina will have 60 days to adjust all their rates and charge by the second, Federal Planning Minister Julio De Vido and Communications Secretary Norberto Berner confirmed in a news conference. Companies Personal, Movistar and Claro will only have 15 days to implement the change for new customers according to the resolution published in the Official Gazette.

• Wednesday, December 18th 2013 - 06:43 UTC

  First ruling against US government 'metadata' collection; Obama meets top technology companies leaders

  

  A US judge has ruled the National Security Agency's mass collection of telephone data may be unconstitutional. Federal District Judge Richard Leon said the electronic spy agency's practice was an “arbitrary invasion”.

• Wednesday, December 18th 2013 - 06:29 UTC

  Paraguay set to approve Venezuela Mercosur membership this Wednesday, ending 18-month rift

  

  Paraguay is waiting for the formality of a Wednesday vote in the Lower House floor to acknowledge the controversial incorporation of Venezuela as full member of Mercosur, putting an end to an 18 months political and diplomatic rift in the block. The Deputies' Constitution Affairs and Foreign Affairs committees on Tuesday afternoon approved Venezuela's Mercosur incorporation protocol, which means all is ready for the full house expected positive vote.

• Wednesday, December 18th 2013 - 06:19 UTC

  Falklands oil industry: Buenos Aires rejects UK formal protest; 'Malvinas are Argentine'

  

  Argentina formally rejected on Tuesday the United Kingdom's 16 December protest against the latest Argentine hydrocarbons legislation which seeks to criminalize oil industry activities in Falklands/Malvinas Islands waters and which London argues is not applicable to the Islands.

• Tuesday, December 17th 2013 - 19:10 UTC

  Uruguay must address fiscal policy (and inflation) suggests leading private bank

  

  The US dollar is poised to continue consolidating during 2014 in Uruguay, and will most probably by the end of the year reach 24 Pesos from the current 21 Pesos, according to Itaú, one of the leading private banks in the country, which also warned about inflation and the fiscal deficit.