Stock markets across Latin America, led by regional heavyweight Brazil, fell sharply Thursday as recession fears sent global markets down. Meanwhile the spot price of gold hit yet another record high of just below 1.829 dollars an ounce.
Argentina lowered fisheries’ export tariffs to all processed goods made out of hake, squid and shrimp. The measure applies for six months and makes effective the promise from Economy Minister Amado Boudou earlier in the month.
European Union finance ministers pledged to beef up a rescue package for troubled economies such as Greece as they went to battle to contain debt crisis contagion threatening to engulf Silvio Berlusconi’s Italy and Socialist Spain.
Global stocks and the Euro sank as fears that Italy could become the latest country caught up in the Euro-zone debt crisis caused investors to sell risky assets and snap up safe-haven US Treasury debt, pushing the 10-year note's yield below 3%.
In what is seen as an escalation of events between European Union policy makers and credit rating agencies, Moody’s said on Wednesday that nearly a third of EU banks undergoing public stress tests may need some outside support.
European Commission strongly criticised international credit ratings agencies following the downgrade of Portugal by Moody's. The Commission said the timing of the downgrade was questionable and raised the issue of the appropriateness of behaviour of the agencies in general.
Poland which currently holds the rotating chair of the European Union presidency warned that any trade agreements with third parties must strictly abide by the EU sanitary and food security standards.
The European Union has published its long-awaited budget, which will see spending on the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) frozen for the next seven years and make 30% of direct support conditional on ‘greening’.
The European Commission’s request for a 5% hike in member states’ contributions in the next EU budget met immediate resistance from big countries such as Germany, France and Britain yesterday.
French banks have agreed to roll over holdings of Greek debt for 30 years, President Nicolas Sarkozy said on Monday, as the Greek government tries to persuade backbench rebels to back a crucial austerity plan to avert bankruptcy.