Politics

• Monday, July 22nd 2013 - 06:29 UTC

  Mercosur chair not interested in restoring normal relations with US

  

  Venezuela says it's ending talks with the United States to restore normal relations because Washington's UN ambassador-designate criticized its human rights record. Venezuela currently holds the chair of Mercosur.

• Monday, July 22nd 2013 - 06:24 UTC

  Uruguay is “extremely expensive: construction costs are double those of Argentina”

  

  Uruguay is not expensive, ‘it has become extremely expensive” with construction costs that are double those of Argentina, claimed Eduardo Constantini, an Argentine business man with strong investments in Uruguay, the latest of which building 500 summer houses along the eastern coast.

• Monday, July 22nd 2013 - 06:21 UTC

  Colombia orders strong offensive after guerrillas ambush and kill 19 soldiers

  

  Colombia’s president has ordered the military to mount a strong offensive against the country’s biggest rebel movement, FARC, after guerrillas killed 19 soldiers this weekend in two regions. President Juan Manuel Santos said Sunday the army will go after the rebels even though the government has been in peace talks with the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia since last year.

• Monday, July 22nd 2013 - 06:17 UTC

  G20 ministers and bankers pledged to put growth before austerity

  

  The Group of 20 nations pledged to put growth before austerity, seeking to revive a global economy that “remains too weak” and adjusting stimulus policies with care so that recovery is not derailed by volatile financial markets.

• Monday, July 22nd 2013 - 06:14 UTC

  G20 agrees to fight against international tax evasion by multinational companies

  

  The G20 group of countries has officially supported plans to fight against international tax evasion by multinational companies. In a statement, the G20 countries agreed to exchange tax information and support the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) in its plans to prevent multinational companies from avoiding tax by moving their profits across borders.

• Monday, July 22nd 2013 - 06:13 UTC

  Chinese banks allowed setting lending rates in hopes of lowering costs

  

  Chinese authorities have given the banking industry greater freedom by allowing banks to set their own lending rates. Previously they were not allowed to lend at rates below a certain level set by the People's Bank of China (PBOC).

• Monday, July 22nd 2013 - 00:22 UTC

  Scandal-hit Vatican bank struck by ‘gay lobby’ conspiracy claims Italian magazine

  

  A few hours before Francis started his first overseas tour to Brazil, the Vatican’s ‘gay lobby’ was back in the headlines after the alleged exposure of a homosexual prelate appointed by the pope to a key position at the Vatican bank, IOR.

• Saturday, July 20th 2013 - 06:34 UTC

  Falkland Islands brought into the IMF-siding-with-Argentina controversy

  

  The IMF decision to side with Argentina in its dispute with the US hedge funds has triggered strong criticism in the UK and the issue was brought up in Parliament, according to a piece in the Daily and Sunday Express under the heading: “The British cash cow: Fury as UK money helps Argentina fight £66bn debt”.

• Saturday, July 20th 2013 - 06:27 UTC

  UK embassy and Buenos Aires City sponsor English language teachers contest

  

  A contest for English language teachers in the city of Buenos Aires is part of 'English Week' that will run from 23 to 28 September. The “English Week contest” has been launched by the Buenos Aires City Foreign Language Operational Office (Dirección Operativa de Lenguas Extranjeras GCBA) and the English Teachers Association of Buenos Aires (APIBA, in Spanish) to enable teachers in the city to share the intercultural experiences of their students.

• Saturday, July 20th 2013 - 06:15 UTC

  Argentine defaulted bond holders demand ‘strict neutrality’ from the IMF

  

  A group of Argentine sovereign defaulted bond-holders have blasted the IMF for its announced intention of filing an amicus brief in support of Argentina before the US courts stating that “there is no role for direct involvement by the IMF in this matter” and any intervention by the IMF “favouring Argentina's request would also clearly violate the Fund's strict commitment to neutrality”.