Newswire: South-South / Emerging Market Cooperation

[China - ASEAN] - China to Boost Cooperation With Asean on Investments - Bloomberg

China wants to boost cooperation with members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations to develop trade and increase investment, said Chinese Commerce Minister Chen Deming.


[ASEAN] - Five Asean Nations May Form Rice-Trade Body, Thai Official Says - Bloomberg

Five Southeast Asian nations may set up a rice-trade association next year to cooperate in stabilizing rice prices, a Thai official said.

Thailand, Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos and Myanmar will also cooperate on other issues related to food security and production, said Chiya Yimvilai, a spokesman at a meeting of Asean economic ministers in Bangkok. The countries would also work together on developing rice products, he said.


[Venezuela - Russia] - PDVSA, Russian Group to Start $30 Billion Oil Venture - Bloomberg

Petroleos de Venezuela SA and a group of Russian oil companies plan to spend $30 billion on a joint venture in Venezuela’s Orinoco region.

The 40-year venture will seek to produce crude in the Junin 6 area and may expand to other Orinoco blocks, Russian Deputy Prime Minister Igor Sechin told reporters in St. Petersburg today after meeting with Venezuelan Vice President Ramon Carrizalez. Russian investors will include OAO Gazprom, OAO Rosneft, OAO Lukoil, TNK-BP and OAO Surgutneftegaz. The venture will be signed “in the coming months,” Sechin said.


[Mexico - Uruguay] - Mexico/Uruguay sign strategic association accord and advance trade - MecroPress

Mexico president Felipe Calderón and Uruguay’s Tabare Vazquez signed on Friday in Montevideo a Strategic Association accord to strengthen political dialogue and bilateral trade relations in the framework of the 2004 free trade agreement.


[Mexico - Colombia - Venezuela - Ecuador] - Mexico offers to mediate between Colombia and Venezuela and Ecuador - MecroPress
Mexican president Felipe Calderón on an official visit to Colombia offered his country’s mediation in the conflict between Bogotá and neighbouring Ecuador and Venezuela.


[Peru - Brazil] - Brazilian President to visit Peru to strengthen strategic alliance - Andina
The next arrival to Lima of Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva will contribute to create a new strategic alliance to face Asian markets when signing several trade agreements, the President of Peru-Brazil Integration Chamber Miguel Vega Alvear.

“The arrival of Brazilian President will strengthen the progress achieved up to now in this Peru-Brazil strategic alliance and it will create a new stage in which both countries can face Asia-Pacific markets,”

Weekend Newswire: Latin America

OAS can’t agree on Cuba, while Havana ridicules the organization
The task force created by the Organization of American States, OAS, in an attempt to bridge different members’ proposals to consider the readmission of Cuba seems to have stalled with the main actors clearly underlining their stance.


Colombia Cuts Benchmark Lending Rate to Record Low 5% to Stimulate Growth
Colombia’s central bank cut its benchmark interest rate to a record today and signaled it’s ready to lower it further in an effort to ward off an extended recession as inflation eases


Braskem Taps Peru, Venezuela in $3.6 Billion Expansion Outside of Brazil
Braskem SA, Latin America’s largest petrochemicals producer, plans to invest $2.5 billion in a polyethylene plant in Peru, said Cleantho de Paiva Leite, Braskem’s director of international projects.

Sao Paulo-based Braskem, which holds a 50 percent share of Brazil’s resins market, also is working on engineering studies for a $1.1 billion petrochemical plant in Venezuela with state- owned Pequiven SA, de Paiva said in an interview in Lima.


Venezuela Expropriations: Chávez Talks Himself into Trouble with Argentina's Fernández de Kirchner
The spark for the conversation sought by Fernández de Kirchner was a remark Chávez is reported to have made in private to Brazilian President Inacio Lula da Silva. That remark, it’s said, was to the effect that Venezuela was on course to take over foreign companies except for Brazilian ones.

President Hugo Chávez’ strategy of nationalizing companies including foreign ones, and a remark he did or did not make in seriousness to Brazilian President Ignacio Lula da Silva, appear to have posed problems for him and his Argentine friend and colleague, Cristina Fernández de Kirchner.

Chávez has depicted Fernández de Kirchner as an ally and soulmate in his bid to build a regional alliance to counter what he sees as the undue influence and power of the United States in Latin America. But his peremptory takeover of steelmaker Sidor and his tendency to talk off the top of his head may well have put her in between the proverbial rock and a hard place at home.


Argentina May Be Sanctioned By Manhattan Judge in Bondholder Litigation
Argentina may be sanctioned for failing to comply with a U.S. court order to turn over to bondholders documents regarding its pension funds, a federal judge in Manhattan said.

U.S. District Judge Thomas Griesa ruled in October that Argentine pension funds nationalized by that country’s government and held in the U.S. may be used to satisfy bondholder judgments against the republic. Argentina has appealed. Griesa later ordered the South American nation to turn over documents related to its pension funds to bondholders.


Argentina's Construction Activity Declined 5.5% in April From Year Earlier
Argentine construction activity fell the most in five months in April, as Argentines delayed investment plans amid the global financial crisis and political concern ahead of next month’s mid-term elections.


Mexico GDP to Sink Most Since 1932 in Fall `Hard to Fathom,' Goldman Says
Mexico’s economy will contract this year by the most since 1932 as a slump in the U.S. curbs demand for exports and slows dollar flows from tourism and remittances, Goldman Sachs Group Inc. said.

Weekend Newswire: Latin America

Bolivia and US agree to improve bilateral ties
Bolivian President Evo Morales has called for a complete overhaul of his country’s strained ties with the US. He urged “mutual respect” between the two nations, saying Washington should not interfere in Bolivia’s affairs.


Venezuelan Bonds Sink to Six-Week Low as Chavez Takeovers Fuel `Distrust'
Venezuela’s benchmark bonds fell to a six-week low after President Hugo Chavez announced the government will take over the hot-briquetted iron industry and other metal companies.


Chavez Takes Control of Venezuela's Hot-Briquetted Iron, Steel Industries
Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez announced the government will take over the hot-briquetted iron industry and other metal companies, increasing its control over the nation’s mineral-wealth industries.

Venezuelan Oil Keeps Attracting Bidders in Bets That Chavez Isn't Forever
Chevron Corp. and Total SA are pursuing new Venezuelan oil projects after President Hugo Chavez tore up past agreements, seized assets of contractors and expelled producers that wouldn’t accept new terms.


Cash short Venezuela negotiating loans from Brazil
Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez, whose administration is facing cash shortages as oil revenues plunge, is negotiating loans from Brazil’s development bank to fund infrastructure projects, revealed the Brazilian newspaper Folha de Sao Paulo.


Brazilian Stocks Gain on Signs of Rising Demand, Commodities; Bolsa Rises Brazil’s
Bovespa index climbed, capping a weekly advance, on speculation domestic demand is recovering and as investors bought commodities to hedge against a weakening dollar.


Brazil's Vale Lowers This Year's Planned Investments to $9 Billion From $14 Billion
Cia. Vale do Rio Doce, the world’s biggest iron-ore producer, said falling costs and a stronger dollar allowed it to cut 2009 planned capital spending by 37 percent.


Mexican Billionaire Salinas May Enter California to Boost Hispanic Banking
Banco Azteca, controlled by Mexican billionaire Ricardo Salinas, says the financial crisis offers the bank a chance to enter the U.S. market and lure Hispanic customers.


Pemex Is `Too Optimistic' About Chicontepec Development, Board Member Says
Petroleos Mexicanos, the state-owned oil company, should reconsider its $11.1 billion plan for the Chicontepec field because lower oil prices make the investment less attractive, said newly appointed board member Fluvio Ruiz.

Newswire: Latin America - Region

[Venezuela] -- Oil-Services Law to Affect Some Foreign Companies
New nationalization legislation now in the hands of Venezuelan lawmakers will impact the operations of some oil-services companies but will leave out rig firms and large well-service firms.

Oil Minister Rafael Ramirez noted Wednesday that firms such as Williams Co. (WMB), a U.S. firm that operates a high-pressure gas compression facility in Venezuela, could be affected by the new law, but noted that oil rig firms and large service firms such as Schlumberger Ltd. (SLB) and Halliburton Co. (HAL) are not included.


[Bolivia] -- U.N. Team Documents Forced Labor Among Indians in Bolivia
LA PAZ – A mission dispatched by the U.N. Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues reported Tuesday that it had verified the existence of Indian communities in eastern Bolivia that are being subjected to forced labor.


[Peru] -- Central Bank May Cut Interest Rate to 4% as Domestic Demand Stalls
Peru’s central bank will probably cut its benchmark lending rate for a fourth straight month today as slowing inflation allows policy makers to lower borrowing costs and bolster flagging domestic demand.


[Peru] -- Repsol to Invest $500 Million a Year in Peru, Complete Projects
Repsol YPF chairman and CEO Antonio Brufau said Tuesday that the Spanish energy giant would invest $500 million per year in Peru, completing $6 billion in oil and natural gas projects.

The Spanish oil company has a large stake in the development of the Camisea natural gas field in southeastern Peru and plans to begin exporting fuel to Mexico next year.


[Chile] -- Codelco Increases Reserves by 20 Percent
Chile’s state-owned National Copper Corporation, or Codelco, the world’s largest producer of the red metal, increased its proven and probable reserves by 20 percent in 2008, company sources told Efe on Wednesday.


[Mexico] -- Calderon Deploys Reserves as Swine Flu Depletes Mexico Financial Resources
As the sun sets on Ciudad Juarez, the Mexican border city’s citizens flee to the safety of their homes. The vendors who crowd Avenida Juarez to sell tacos and ice cream during the day pack up their carts and disappear. Hawkers who hand out leaflets for a local mall are gone too -- and the mall itself is a ghost town.

Headlines you never thought you would read -- China Quarantines Mexicans - WSJ

Headlines are a powerful tool in news media.

China, which is coincidentally one of the main topics discussed on this site is frequently thrown into headlines I never thought I would read before.

In tribute to such I have decided to start a theme -- "Headlines you never thought you would read."

Here are some excerpts from today's Wall Street Journal article titled "China Quarantines Mexicans."



BEIJING -- The A/H1N1 flu outbreak is leading to a potential diplomatic row between China and Mexico, as Chinese health authorities round up and quarantine scores of Mexicans -- only one of whom is thus far reported to be sick -- as they fly in on business and holiday trips.

Mexico's foreign minister said Mexican citizens with no signs of infection had been isolated in "unacceptable conditions" in China. Patricia Espinosa told a news conference Saturday that such measures were "discriminatory and ungrounded" and that the government is advising Mexicans to stay away from China.

Gustavo Carrillo, a 36-year-old general manager of a Mexican technology company in China who lives in Beijing with his wife and three sons, was taken off his Continental Airlines plane on Saturday and rushed into quarantine at a Beijing hotel. He had traveled to the U.S. from China on a business trip and hadn't visited Mexico.

Mr. Carrillo said health officials took the temperatures of other passengers after the plane landed, but didn't check his after they saw his Mexican passport. Instead, they led him down the aisle past gawking passengers. "It was embarrassing and humiliating," he said. "It's just pure discrimination."

"We felt like we were in a zoo," said Angel Yamil Silum, a 27-year-old business student, who arrived in Beijing with his girlfriend on Saturday as transit passengers en route to Bangkok for a holiday and ended up at Ditan and then the Guo Men Hotel.

Sigh...

Click here to access this full article from the WSJ.

Esteban Colberto live from Trinidad and Tobago

Hilarious clip from last nights Colbert Report on Comedy Central. If you are a international reader or simply someone who is not familiar with Stephen Colbert I would like to point out that he is the host of a show that is a political satire.

Please watch with a open mind and realize he is being sarcastic...

The Colbert Report	Mon - Thurs 11:30pm / 10:30c
Summit of All Fears
colbertnation.com
Colbert Report Full Episodes Political Humor Gay Marriage Commercial

If you make it to the end of the video he does a very funny little bit on the US demand for drugs. Worth your time watching.

What's shakin in Latin America?

Obama leaves for Mexico and prepares for regional summit test - MercoPress

United States President Barack Obama heads to Mexico Thursday and then continues on to Trinidad and Tobago for the fifth Summit of the Americas. Security concerns along the US-Mexico border are expected to top Mr. Obama’s discussions with Mexican President Felipe Calderon, while the summit provides an opportunity to reinvigorate the US hemispheric ties and forge a regional response to the global economic downturn, according to a Voice of America report.

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Peru's economy likely to have grown 3.1% in 1Q 2009 - Andina

Lima, Apr. 14 (ANDINA).- Peru's economy might have grown 3.1 percent in the first quarter, according to the Lider index estimates, which shows economic trends in the short term, stated today the Ministry of Economy and Finances (MEF).

Peruvian economy keeps growing despite global crisis. Photo: ANDINA/Archive

This estimate is lower than the 3.8 percent reported by the Ministry in last month's report.

Under the new estimates, the economy would have grown by 2.2 in February, lower than the three percent predicted previously, however the Ministry keeps its March estimate of 3.9 percent.

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Bilateral commission to study power sales to Chile - BNAmericas

Argentine and Paraguayan government officials have agreed to establish a bilateral commission to study the technical feasibility of selling power to Chile.

The commission will have 180 days to carry out the study, Paraguay's presidential website reported.

Paraguay would receive roughly US$140mn/y from the energy sales, according to Carlos Cardozo, the landlocked country's director of the EBY joint venture, which administers the Yacyretá hydroelectric dam on the Argentine-Paraguayan border.

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Supermercados chinos - Danwei, Nancy Lu (Chinese run supermarkets in Argentina)

At first glance, this book may seem uninteresting. After all, nobody reads manuals.

But upon closer inspection, you realize that this is a Chinese-Spanish language manual for running a supermarket. Open it and you find the distinctive Rioplatense Spanish of Argentina, with useful phrases such as “Gracias a vos: 谢谢你” (thank you) or “Yo tampoco tengo monedas: 我也没有硬币” (I don’t have coins either).

One finer detail of the book is that it is written in simplified Chinese, addressed to a mainland audience. Yet the name in traditional Chinese at the bottom of the cover indicates something about the author — he is Taiwanese.

The evolution of the Chinese-run supermarkets provides an interesting snapshot of the changing Chinese presence in Buenos Aires. While most Chinese-run supermarkets were originally opened by immigrants from Taiwan, there is a shift towards these businesses being sold to and run by mainland Chinese. This book is further evidence of that trend.

Latin American fence mending - Reuters Video

Apr. 13 (Reuters) - President Obama heads south as part of an effort to establish a new relationship with Latin America.

Vice Prez, Joe Biden says "US moving towards new day in Latin America

La Nacion, a Buenos Aires based newspaper published a interesting op-ed piece today, which the Latin American Herald (access their article here).

Biden stressed the importance of the Progressive Governance conference which he is currently attending in Chile.

Joe Biden with a few South American heads of state

Biden also had the guts to acknowledge much like Hillary Clinton did in Mexico the other day that the United States must “do more” to reduce the demand for illegal drugs and stop the arms trade."

He congratulated “Mexico’s brave stand” against drug cartels and the “efforts” of Colombia to combat drugs, but warned that these “will have the secondary effect of pushing traffickers towards Central America.”

“The world economic crisis has affected almost everyone. Citizens of all countries are looking for answers, looking for hope, and for that they turn to their leaders. It is our duty, as partners, to listen to their plea and together forge the solution to a shared problem, explained Biden.”

China and Argentina Agree on Currency Swap --Update from IDB annual meeting in Colombia

March 30 (Bloomberg) -- The central banks of China and Argentina reached an agreement for a three-year, 70 billion yuan ($10 billion) currency swap, Chinese Central Bank Governor Zhou Xiaochuan told reporters in Medellin, Colombia, today.

It’s the first such accord between the world’s third- biggest economy and a Latin American nation. The move follows swap accords between China and Indonesia, South Korea, Hong Kong, Malaysia and Belarus.

The agreement broadens Argentina’s access to foreign- currency reserves and may ease concerns about the country’s ability to control the peso amid uncertainty over a conflict with farmers over export taxes and legislative elections scheduled for June 28. Argentina wasn’t part of a swap facility program created by the U.S. Federal Reserve for emerging markets, including Brazil and Mexico, last year.

Click here to access this full article from Bloomberg

Schlumberger-led group wins 500-well Chicontepec contract - Mexico

Back on Feb 5, 2009 I reported on this site how Sinopec was bidding in Mexico for a oil contract. Well... The Texan beast, Schlumberger has won the bid. Thought I would update.

Feb 5 article -- Sinopec competes against Schlumberger Ltd and Halliburton Co. for drilling contracts in Mexico

Perspective on Mexican cement giant CEMEX

Cemex: Cracked, But Still Sturdy -- The Fool

Mexico's Cemex (NYSE: CX) was once very nearly the emerging star of the international world of cement. But the company, recently on the prowl for new financing, has now discovered that the world has changed a lot in just the past few years.

Cemex is the world's third largest cement company, behind France's LaFarge (OTC : LARGY. PK) and Holcim (OTC: HCMLY. PK). After a lengthy search for cash infusions abroad, it became clear that Cemex would have had to fork over an interest rate of between 15% and 20%, according to some reports, to sell its bonds last week. It'll therefore return to banks for a fresh supply of pesos.

Unfortunately, Cemex is paying penance for a number of recent acquisitions. Its latest purchase was last year's $15.3 billion devouring of Australia's Rinker Materials. The deal gave the company exposure to markets in such places as the United States, the U.K., and Spain -- just in time to see housing and construction slowdowns put a big crimp on those nation's economies.

In the wake of the deal, Cemex's net debt reached $17.8 million, or five times its most recent years' earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization (EBITDA). Partly as a result, rating agencies Fitch and Standard & Poor's have reduced Cemex's bonds to a below-investment-grade BB+.

Click here to access the full article from the Motley Fool

Trouble for Mexico's oil sector

Petroleos Mexicanos (PEMEX), Mexico's state oil conglomerate said on Friday, crude oil output fell 9.2% in January.

Cantarell, one of Pemex's largest oil fields and the third largest in the world, saw output plunge at its fastest rate in over 14 years. Pemex says the field is currently producing around 772,000 barrels a day, down a whopping 38% from a year earlier.

Pemex's overall production fell to 2.885 million barrels a day, down from 2.957 million barrels a year earlier.

“If the question is, what is Pemex going to do in the short-term to prevent the falling production?” George Baker, a Houston-based energy consultant who publishes the newsletter Mexico Energy Intelligence, said in an interview. “I’m afraid the answer is nothing.”

On a positive note, Pemex's natural-gas output rose 8.5% to 7.091 billion cubit feet in January. Too bad natural-gas fell below $4 per million British thermal units for the first time in more than six years (see this Bloomberg article for more)

All in all, Pemex and more importantly the country of Mexico need to re-align their economy away from the oil sector. This has proven rather difficult in the past, as it has as well in other Latin American country's which rely too heavily on a particular basket of commodity exports.

The current global recession is once again evidence of how dangerous a commodity focused growth strategy in reality is.

For Mexico, the situation is even more dire. Crude oil and natural gas, as you can see below (and have probably heard) are not selling for what they used to.

Close proximity to the US, heavy reliance on money from relatives working in the US, a declining oil industry and the general erosion of their competitive edge in manufactured goods because of the rise of Asia put Mexico in a particularly difficult situation.

I in no way consider myself a expert on Mexico. As a matter a fact, I have purposely left Mexico out of much of my academic writing due to the unique Macro-Economic conditions facing the country. Check out this site for a great read on Mexico (http://mexfiles.net/).

China-South America -- China pursues Latin America ties -- BBC Article

Two top Chinese officials have started visits to Latin America as part of an intensified effort to strengthen ties with the region.

Chinese Vice-Premier Hui Liangyu is to visit Argentina, Ecuador, Barbados and the Bahamas.

Vice-President Xi Jinping is visiting Jamaica, Colombia, Venezuela and China's two biggest trading partners in the region, Brazil and Mexico.

Click here to access the full article from BBC

China-Mexico: Sinopec competes against Schlumberger Ltd and Halliburton Co. for drilling contracts in Mexico

China's Sinopec Group has become the first Chinese oil company to venture into Mexico's energy industry. Sinopec is competing for two large drilling contracts in Mexico's Chicontepec oil basin according to Compranet, the procurement website of the Mexican Government.

According to this article from the Dow Jones Newswires you can access via Rigzone, "Even if Sinopec loses the upcoming tenders, the Chinese heavyweight appears to be taking a long-term approach in Mexico. Next week, Sinopec executives will give a presentation to state-run Petróleos Mexicanos on the company's land and offshore drilling equipment, said an industry executive familiar with the meeting."

Sinopec has already expanded into markets in Africa, South America and Russia in order to ensure Chinese refining capacity and oil supplies. If Sinopec wins the bidding process this will be China's first major energy investments in Central America.

Officially Petroleos Mexicanos (PEMEX), the state oil company of Mexico maintains a monopoly on oil sales, thus Sinopec can only be hired as a service contractor. This means, Sinopec must see winning these bids as a sound investment.

PEMEX will in effect be paying the winner cash to develop and drill for oil on behalf of PEMEX. Recent reforms in the oil industry entitle PEMEX to offer incentives to contractors who finish their work ahead of schedule. All in all, Sinopec is hoping to generate a nice chunk of cash from pursuing this deal.

It also doesn't hurt Sinopec's image if it can win the bidding at a fair market price for a assets that both Schlumberger and Halliburton would like to get their hands on.

FT Commentary -- How are frozen credit markets and the global slowdown being felt down in South America?

Stephen Fidler put together a great piece on January 8th where he presents various perspectives and analysis from South America on how the global crisis is affecting the region.

Across the continent, the crisis has brought about a large-scale destruction of wealth. Claudio Loser, a former western hemisphere chief at the International Monetary Fund, calculates that 40 per cent of Latin America’s financial wealth was wiped out in the first 11 months of 2008 through falls in stock and other asset markets and currency depreciation. That $2,200bn (£1,440bn, €1,610bn) loss alone could cut domestic spending by 5 per cent next year, he estimates.

On top of that, flows of credit from abroad have contracted sharply and the region, much of which depends on exporting raw materials, has been pummeled by a collapse in commodities prices. The deterioration in Latin America’s terms of trade – the price of exports divided by the price of imports – could hit even harder than the credit crisis, says Mr Loser, now with the Inter-American Dialogue, a Washington think-tank. “The fact that the terms of trade have gone so far against the Latin American economies in terms of agriculture, minerals and petroleum is really going to hit the region very hard,” he says.

Click here to access the full article from the Financial Times

News Line: South-South Cooperation -- Asia-Latin America Business Boom

1) Latin Business Chronicle: Asia-Latin Trade Boom - by Joachim Bamrud

With the U.S. economy continuing to show weak results, Latin America is increasingly betting on Asia. Latin American exporters have found eager markets in countries like China, Japan and India, while Asian companies, in turn, are boosting their exports to Latin America.

"The growth of Asia will drive the business with Latin America," says R. Viswanathan, India's ambassador to Argentina, Uruguay and Paraguay and widely considered India's leading expert on Latin America. “Both governments and business have started looking at the potential for complementary cooperation between the two regions....

"Trade will grow despite short-term commodity price fluctuations because demand in Asia remains high for Latin America’s resources," says Michael Diaz, managing partner at U.S.-based law firm Diaz Reus, which serves many clients involved in Asian-Latin American business....

*** You must be a full member of the Latin Business Chronicle to access the full article. Click here for the free expert

2) Gazprom, Total to invest $45 billion in new exploration in Bolivia reports Business News Americas Russian oil company Gazprom and French oil major Total (NYSE: TOT) have signed an MOU with Bolivia's state hydrocarbons company YPFB to invest US$4.5bn in a new natural gas project in Bolivia, a YPFB spokesperson told BNamericas, confirming local press reports.

The three companies will develop the project in the southeast of Bolivia, where Total is already producing natural gas from six wells, the spokesperson said.

Production from the project could reach 26Mm3/d.

Click here to access the full article from Business News Americas

3) Garcia and Lulu discuss increasing bi-lateral trade and investment between Peru and Brazil reports Andina News

Sao Paulo, Sep. 18 (ANDINA).- President Alan García held Thursday evening a meeting with his Brazilian counterpart, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, to discuss about bilateral relations and the possibility to attract more investments to Peru....

President Alan Garcia and his Brazilian counterpart
Luiz Inacio da Silva in San Paulo. Photo Sepres

García said Thursday morning that during the meeting he will propose to his Brazilian counterpart “a reinforced bilateral agreement”, a kind of Free Trade Agreement (FTA), which will include speeding up a tariff exemption process....

Click here to access the full story in english from Andina News

Disappear for 12 days and things go a bit crazy... falling Metals drag down LATAM financials --

Latin American stock markets plunged Monday, led by a slide in Brazilian and Mexican equities as prices for resources sparked a broad sell-off and growing fears about the performance of the US economy. Brazil and Mexico markets fell to their lowest level in seven and six months, while in Argentina the Merval ended at a two year record low.

In Sao Paulo, the Bovespa dropped 3.5% to 55,609.07, its third consecutive decline. Shares of the market's heaviest-weighted stock, oil giant Petrobras tumbled 4.7%. Something similar happened with Companhia Vale do Rio Doce, the world’s leading iron ore mining giant which slid 7.2%.

Click here to access the full article from Merco Press

More comprehensive updates and analysis of past weeks events and where things may be heading to come. Need to play catch up with the world after 12 days in Brazil, with limited net, tv and media I could read (my Portuguese is not the greatest)

China, Mexico etablish strategic dialogue mechanism reports Xinhua News

BEIJING, July 11 (Xinhua) -- China and Mexico announced the establishment of a strategic dialogue mechanism on Friday during talks between Chinese President Hu Jintao and his Mexican counterpart Felipe Calderon Hinojosa.

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Chinese President Hu Jintao (R) shakes hands with Mexican President Felipe Calderon Hinojosa during the welcoming ceremony Hu hosts for him at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, capital of China, July 11, 2008. (Xinhua Photo)
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During the talks, Hu put forward a four-point proposal to cement Sino-Mexican relations:

--Strengthening political dialogue, maintaining high-level contact, and realizing the action plan from 2006 to 2010 to promote strategic partnership;

--Boosting a win-win economic cooperation. The Chinese government encourages its enterprises to invest in Mexico's infrastructure including ports, roads, and hydroelectric stations, and supports cooperation on mining, telecommunication, agriculture and the fishing industry;

--Pushing personnel exchanges in the fields of culture, education, traditional medicine and social development;

--Promoting multilateral cooperation and consultation on major international affairs so as to safeguard the legal rights of developing countries..................

Click here to access the full article from Xinhua News

Hilarious headline flashed earlier on Bloomberg Live TV "breaking news"...

"Texas real estate slump lets Mexicans take it back."

Thought I would share that, lol. Goodstuff Mexico!