Uruguayan president Jose Mujica currently in Beijing on an official visit, underlined the significance of China in trade and investments fro South America, but also admitted there is some ‘fear’ mainly from Argentina and Brazil about a greater integration and dependency from the Asian giant.
Mercosur must negotiate any possible incorporation to the Alliance of the Pacific “as a block” since it is important that its member countries remain ‘united’ and respect the current charter, said the Mercosur High Representative, Ambassador Ivan Ramalho from Brazil.
The Argentine ambassador to Uruguay, Dante Dovena, assured that authorities are “working intensely” in preparations for the next Mercosur summit scheduled to take place on June 28th in Montevideo. However news form Paraguay doesn’t indicate the same optimism and are demanding respect for ‘the country’s dignity and rule of the law”.
Continuing with the so called ‘dollar clamp’ Argentine institutions issuing credit cards will further limit the extraction of dollars from automatic cashiers: travellers to neighbouring countries will only be allowed 100 dollars every three months and those visiting non neighbouring countries, 800 dollars per month.
The investment in the construction industry in Uruguay soared 26.45% last year over 2011 and reached seven billion dollars, of which 40% correspond to the Brazilian-Chilean pulp mill, Montes del Plata, the country’s largest investment in years equivalent to 2 billion dollars. However there are storm clouds ahead.
Uruguayan President Jose Mujica begins on Wednesday the longest and most ambitious of his overseas trips hoping to convince China to invest in infrastructure projects that are crucial for the development of the country and its foreign trade: a deep water port and recovering the rail cargo network.
For several days beginning Wednesday Uruguay, as its neighbours, Brazil and Argentina will be ruled by a woman. Lucia Topolansky, Fist Lady but also Senator and third in the succession line will become interim president since her husband is off on an official trip to China and Europe, and Vice-president Danilo Astori will be attending the Alliance of the Pacific summit in Colombia.
Uruguay's main economic problem is high inflation, and policymakers will continue to use interest rates and bank reserve requirements to bring it under control, Vice President Danilo Astori said on Tuesday. Consumer prices in Uruguay rose 8.14% in the 12 months through April, far outside the country's official annual target range of 4 to 6%.
The Uruguayan 2012/13 cruise season experienced a 10% increase in the number of calls to the ports of Montevideo and Punta del Este totalling 240 and approximately 400.000 visitors between passengers and crew members.
In an interview with the Spanish government news agency EFE, Uruguayan President José “Pepe” Mujica said Argentina’s economic “autarkic project” “worsens” bilateral ties and “multiplies” trade troubles. Still, he ruled out pressures on Buenos Aires; “they won’t work,” he insisted.