IMF Managing Director is scheduled to visit Uruguay next month where he will meet President Jose Mujica and his economic team before flying to Brazil. Dominique Strauss-Khan will arrive in Uruguay from Panama and is not scheduled to visit Argentina, according to Uruguayan government sources.
Canadian credit rating agency DBRS maintained Uruguay’s debt at BB (two steps below investment grade) but elevated prospect from stable to positive. The latest release from DBRS means Uruguay in the next 6 to 12 months could advance to one step below investment grade if “current fiscal discipline is sustained and levels of debt continue the descending trend”.
An overwhelming volume of Uruguayan exports of goods in 2010, --84%-- were commodities and natural resources with some degree of manufacturing but low technological input according to the latest report from the Chamber of Industries.
Some of the world’s leading oil companies turned up at the Uruguay Round II informative session for operators interested in participating in the biding process for offshore exploration in Uruguay’s South Atlantic.
Uruguay’s manufacturing industry expanded 4.5% in 2010, but if the pulp industry hub is excluded the percentage drops to 3.5%, according to the latest release from the National Statistics Institute, INE.
Chile and Uruguay and another fifteen countries have officially presented plans to the International Atomic Energy Agency for the construction of nuclear plants, revealed AIEA following a four-day meeting on the issue in Vienna.
During January (summer high season) Uruguay received 413.780 tourists, 40% more than a year ago, with the Argentines leading the inflow, according to the latest figures released by Migration Office and the Ministry of Tourism.
The European Union Trade Commissioner Karen De Gucht anticipates a full trade agreement with Mercosur will be reached in a “short time” given the negotiations “unusual” speed but also cautioned about new challenges such as currencies over or under appreciation.
Uruguay has the highest per capita consumption of milk in Latin America averaging between 225 and 230 liters. This compares favorably with Argentina’s 220 liters, Brazil’s 110 and Chile’s 100.
Uruguay intends to develop as many wind farms as its electricity grid can support, effectively diversifying its energy supply beyond hydropower and fossil fuels. At present, the country is in the process of installing 500MW of wind power projects.