LatinNews Daily
LatinNews Daily - 30 July 2021
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- GUATEMALA: Mass protests calling for Giammattei and Porras to resign
Andean
- PERU: Opposition to Castillo’s hard-left choice for prime minister
- In brief: Bolivia presents plan for reactivation of hydrocarbon sector
Brazil
- BRAZIL: Bolsonaro whips up tensions with the judiciary again
- In brief: Brazil’s stock of formal jobs grows
Central America & Caribbean
- In brief: DR central bank revises up 2021 growth forecast
Mexico
- MEXICO: UN bodies denounce impunity in high-profile case of tortured journalist
- In brief: Mexico’s CFE reveals cost of February blackout
Southern Cone
- PARAGUAY: New deadly attack attributed to the EPP
- In brief: Signs of Uruguay’s economic recovery
On 29 July thousands of demonstrators took to the streets in Guatemala’s capital, Guatemala City, and across the country calling for the resignations of President Alejandro Giammattei and the head of the attorney general’s office (AG), María Consuelo Porras.
LatinNews Daily - 29 July 2021
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- PERU: Castillo rules out nationalisations in inauguration speech
Andean
- In brief: IDB approves loan to combat poverty in Ecuador
Brazil
- BRAZIL: Health minister urges second dose take-up
- In brief: Brazil’s federal debt rises
Central America & Caribbean
- COSTA RICA: New bill to permanently outlaw oil and gas exploitation
- In brief: DR and US sign new five-year economic development cooperation deal
Mexico
- MEXICO: Judge accepts to hear appeal against judicial reform
- In brief: Average household income slumps in Mexico
Southern Cone
- ARGENTINA: Internal PJ divisions force Fernández into cabinet changes
- In brief: Argentina completes July domestic bonds placements
On 28 July, Pedro Castillo was inaugurated as Peru’s new president and sought to calm investor nerves with a pledge not to nationalise private companies.
LatinNews Daily - 28 July 2021
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- GUATEMALA: Giammattei on the defensive over bribery allegations
Andean
- COLOMBIA: Troops sent following mass displacement in Antioquia
- In brief: Investment in expansion of Peruvian airports
Brazil
- BRAZIL: Ministerial reshuffle to strengthen Bolsonaro
- In brief: FDI to Brazil plummets in June
Central America & Caribbean
- In brief: CAF approves new loan for Costa Rica’s electricity institute
Mexico
- MEXICO: Spike in Covid-19 infections raises more questions over school reopening
- In brief: Mexico’s economic activity surges in May
Southern Cone
- ARGENTINA: Pfizer deal sealed, but questions remain
- In brief: Paraguay’s central bank revises up GDP forecast
On 27 July Guatemala’s President Alejandro Giammattei denied having received bribes from Russian nationals.
LatinNews Daily - 27 July 2021
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- PERU: Early blow for Castillo as congress elects conservative leadership
Andean
- In brief: Bolivia looks to new technologies with first nuclear research reactor
Brazil
- BRAZIL: Concern over the lifting of barriers to firearms exports
- In brief: Brazil hails reduction in government subsidies
Central America & Caribbean
- EL SALVADOR: Rights groups question militarisation of citizen security
- In brief: Panama’s banking superintendency fines Bank of China
Mexico
- MEXICO: López Obrador faces supreme court pressure over medicines shortages
- In brief: Mexico’s unemployment rate improves in June
Southern Cone
- CHILE: Schools reopened despite remonstrations
- In brief: Argentina’s YPF to explore Vaca Muerta potential in Mendoza
On 26 July Peru’s unicameral national congress elected a conservative congressional leadership, posing an early challenge to President-elect Pedro Castillo and the far-left Perú Libre party for which he won election.
LatinNews Daily - 26 July 2021
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- GUATEMALA: Firing of top anti-corruption prosecutor sparks protests
Andean
- COLOMBIA: High court suspends military’s role in protests
- In brief: Colombia and Switzerland renew sustainable development agreement
Brazil
- BRAZIL: Bolsonaro faces more protests
- In brief: Brazilian agri-exports surge this year
Central America & Caribbean
- In brief: Nicaragua’s economic growth ticks up
Mexico
- MEXICO: López Obrador lauds Cuba
- In brief: Tax evasion in Mexico estimated to amount to 6% of GDP
Southern Cone
- CHILE: Provoste throws her hat in the ring
- In brief: Union highlights Paraguay’s agricultural performance
Washington Watch
- US appoints special envoy for Haiti
On 24 July hundreds of people took to the streets in Guatemala City calling for the resignation of President Alejandro Giammattei and the head of the attorney general’s office (AG), María Consuelo Porras.
LatinNews Daily - 23 July 2021
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- BRAZIL: Defence minister denies talk of cancelling election
Andean
- COLOMBIA: Retired army captain accused of attack on Duque
- In brief: Pension changes in Peru
Brazil
- In brief: Pre-salt continues to drive Petrobras production in Brazil
Central America & Caribbean
- CUBA: US imposes new sanctions
- In brief: Costa Rica’s goods exports surge
Mexico
- MEXICO: Debate rages over use of ‘influencers’
- In brief: Mexico’s economy minister talks USMCA in the US
Southern Cone
- CHILE: Report highlights mounting violence in south
- In brief: Food prices rise in Argentina
On 22 July, Brazil’s defence minister Walter Souza Braga Netto denied reports that he had warned Arthur Lira, the government-aligned president of the chamber of deputies, that presidential elections would not take place next year if paper ballots had not been introduced.
LatinNews Daily - 22 July 2021
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- CUBA: Rights groups denounce summary trials of protesters
Andean
- PERU: Castillo meets Sagasti to discuss handover
- In brief: Economic activity in Venezuela continues to decline, says think-tank
Brazil
- BRAZIL: Ministers call for return to in-person classes
- In brief: Strong tax take for Brazil this year
Central America & Caribbean
- In brief: Honduras’s trade deficit expands
Mexico
- MEXICO: Government claims security progress
- In brief: Mexico’s urban expansion costly, says study
Southern Cone
- ARGENTINA: Buenos Aires province strikes debt deal
- In brief: Argentina’s monthly economic activity slows in May
On 21 July, local and international human rights groups reported that summary trials had begun in Cuba of people detained in relation to the recent protests against the government led by President Miguel Díaz-Canel.
LatinNews Daily - 21 July 2021
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- HAITI: New PM takes office
Andean
- COLOMBIA: Duque calls for unity as protests resume
- In brief: Construction and mining drive Bolivian recovery
Brazil
- BRAZIL: Bolsonaro to keep ally as attorney general
- In brief: Brazil’s Ceará to build desalination plant
Central America & Caribbean
- In brief: Costa Rica’s Alvarado hails approval of IMF loan
Mexico
- MEXICO: López Obrador responds to spying scandal
- In brief: Analysts raise Mexico’s GDP forecast
Southern Cone
- CHILE: Health minister faces grilling in congress
- In brief: Argentina registers decrease in primary fiscal deficit
On 20 July Ariel Henry was sworn-in as Haiti’s new prime minister.
LatinNews Daily - 20 July 2021
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- PERU: Castillo declared victor, Fujimori acknowledges defeat
Andean
- In brief: Colombia’s trade deficit more than doubles in May
Brazil
- BRAZIL: Covid-19 epidemic slows, but threat remains
- In brief: Inflation forecasts continue to rise in Brazil
Central America & Caribbean
- HAITI: Joseph steps aside for new PM to take over
- In brief: Panama’s GDP shows signs of recovery
Mexico
- MEXICO: UIF pursuing top electoral judge for corruption
- In brief: Mexico agri-food exports show strong performance
Southern Cone
- PARAGUAY: Audit reveals violation of Itaipú Treaty
- In brief: Chilean markets rise in response to primaries’ results
On 19 July the far-left Perú Libre candidate Pedro Castillo was proclaimed president-elect by Peru’s national electoral court (JNE), with his challenger from the right-wing Fuerza Popular, Keiko Fujimori, vowing to recognise the results of the disputed 6 June run-off election.
LatinNews Daily - 19 July 2021
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- CHILE: Presidential primaries produce shock
Andean
- PERU: Fujimori files last challenge ahead of JNE declaration
- In brief: Gov’t investment above pre-pandemic levels in Peru
Brazil
- BRAZIL: Alleged vaccine irregularities implicate ex-minister
- In brief: Brazil’s Rio Grande do Sul sells off electricity company
Central America & Caribbean
- HAITI: Foreign community pulls support for Joseph
- In brief: Panama and Japan to boost trade and investment ties
Mexico
- MEXICO: Indigenous groups show support for new self-defence group
- In brief: Mexico’s López Obrador announces new airport
Southern Cone
- In brief: Chile defends free trade at Apec meeting
Washington Watch
- US issues more sanctions against Nicaraguan public officials
On 18 July Chile staged two crucial primary elections to select candidates to compete in the presidential elections on 21 November.
LatinNews Daily - 16 July 2021
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- REGION: Biden considers ensuring internet access in Cuba
Andean
- COLOMBIA: Soldiers charged with ‘false positive’ killings
- In brief: Production up in Peru
Brazil
- BRAZIL: Homicides on the up again
- In brief: Brazil’s São Paulo state completes airport auction
Central America & Caribbean
- In brief: Panama appoints team to negotiate with FQM
Mexico
- MEXICO: López Obrador further expands military’s role
- In brief: Mexico’s CFE announces investment in hydroelectric plants
Southern Cone
- CHILE: Mapuche activists repudiate constitutional convention
- In brief: Argentina’s annual inflation ticks up
On 15 July US President Joe Biden said that his government is considering whether it can help restore public access to the internet in Cuba after this was restricted by the Cuban government as part of its efforts to quell the anti-government protests that have erupted on the island.
LatinNews Daily - 15 July 2021
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- NICARAGUA: Opposition refuses to participate in election
Andean
- VENEZUELA: Maduro seeks to fracture the opposition
- In brief: Peru ratifies Trans-Pacific trade deal
Brazil
- BRAZIL: International pressure on deforestation set to increase
- In brief: Negative variation in Brazil’s May economic activity
Central America & Caribbean
- In brief: New telecoms investment announced in Panama
Mexico
- MEXICO: Drug trafficker sprung from custody in armed raid
- In brief: Mexico’s López Obrador has a dig at Spanish firms
Southern Cone
- ARGENTINA: Covid-19 death toll reaches alarming figure
- In brief: Chile’s central bank raises benchmark interest rate
On 14 July Héctor Mairena, the spokesperson for Nicaraguan opposition party Unión Democrática Renovadora (Unamos), slammed the 7 November general election in which President Daniel Ortega is seeking another term for the ruling Frente Sandinista de Liberación Nacional (FSLN) as a “farce” and said Unamos would not participate.
LatinNews Daily - 14 July 2021
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- CUBA: First death linked to unprecedented protests
Andean
- VENEZUELA: Renewed push for imperilled Maduro-Guaidó negotiations
- In brief: Colombia’s gov’t announces new tax reform bill
Brazil
- BRAZIL: Supreme court nominee formalised amid tensions
- In brief: Brazil’s services sector returns to pre-pandemic levels
Central America & Caribbean
- In brief: Think-tank warns poverty set to rise in Honduras
Mexico
- MEXICO: Government confirms pandemic third wave under way
- In brief: Mexico’s industrial sector slowly continues recovery
Southern Cone
- ARGENTINA: Progress in negotiations with IMF
- In brief: Argentina announces green development production plan
On 13 July Cuba’s interior ministry confirmed that a man died the previous day during a protest against the government led by President Miguel Díaz-Canel in the municipality of Arroyo Naranjo, on the outskirts of Havana.
LatinNews Daily - 13 July 2021
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- VENEZUELA: Leading opposition figure arrested
Andean
- In brief: Ecuador’s gov’t enters dialogue with agricultural sector
Brazil
- BRAZIL: Police investigation ups pressure on Bolsonaro
- In brief: Brazil’s latest coffee harvest beats export records
Central America & Caribbean
- HAITI: US reviewing whether to send troops
- In brief: Panama’s tax take exceeds forecast
Mexico
- MEXICO: López Obrador goes on offensive over human rights record
- In brief: Mexico’s formal sector starting to show signs of recovery
Southern Cone
- CHILE: New wave of violence in La Araucanía
- In brief: Chile’s finance ministry raises GDP forecast
On 12 July a prominent Venezuelan political opposition figure, Freddy Guevara, was arrested, triggering widespread condemnation.
LatinNews Daily - 12 July 2021
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- CUBA: Government faces biggest protests in decades
Andean
- PERU: Supreme court clashes with congress
- In brief: Peru’s trade balance continues upwards trend
Brazil
- BRAZIL: Senate president rebuffs Bolsonaro, defends elections
- In brief: Brazil’s Guedes defends changes to income tax
Central America & Caribbean
- In brief: Industrial production up in El Salvador
Mexico
- MEXICO: Security operation launched in drug hotspot
- In brief: Mexico’s international tourism on the road to recovery
Southern Cone
- PARAGUAY: Military implicated in arms trafficking
- In brief: Slight easing of Argentina’s extended flight restrictions
Washington Watch
- Nuland visits Central America
On 11 July thousands of people took to the streets in Cuba’s capital, Havana, and other cities and towns across the island, calling for an end to the Communist government led by President Miguel Díaz-Canel.
LatinNews Daily - 09 July 2021
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- REGION: Uruguay and Brazil force issue of Mercosur reform
Andean
- VENEZUELA: Gang violence engulfs Caracas
- In brief: Peru leads Eclac 2021 growth forecasts for South America
Brazil
- BRAZIL: Bolsonaro snubs senate pandemic inquiry
- In brief: Brazil’s inflation slows
Central America & Caribbean
- HAITI: Foreign nationals arrested over Moïse assassination
- In brief: Honduras and BCIE sign new loan to improve potable water supply
Mexico
- MEXICO: López Obrador’s brother causes problems for the president
- In brief: Mexico and US strike deal over GM labour dispute
Southern Cone
- In brief: Argentina to supply gas to Chile
On 8 July the presidents of Uruguay and Brazil insisted that the Southern Common Market (Mercosur) regional customs union must reform its rules for it to remain as an effective tool that promotes its members’ economic development.
LatinNews Daily - 08 July 2021
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- HAITI: UN calls for investigation into Moïse’s assassination
Andean
- COLOMBIA: Duque rejects IACHR police reform recommendation
- In brief: Port blockade hits Colombian coffee exporters
Brazil
- BRAZIL: Bolsonaro reaches out to base with supreme court nomination
- In brief: Strong outlook for Brazil’s retail sector
Central America & Caribbean
- In brief: DR’s economic growth continues to recover
Mexico
- MEXICO: OHCHR condemns murder of indigenous human rights activist
- In brief: Mexico to create new state-run LPG distribution firm
Southern Cone
- REGION: Uruguay shakes up Mercosur
- In brief: Argentina moves to sanction oil firms operating in the Falklands/Malvinas
On 7 July the United Nations (UN) condemned the assassination of Haiti's President Jovenel Moïse, shot dead in his private residence by unknown attackers earlier that day, and called for the perpetrators of the crime to be brought to justice.
LatinNews Daily - 07 July 2021
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- VENEZUELA: US condemns arrest of high-profile human rights activists
Andean
- In brief: Ecuador tallies pandemic cost on firms
Brazil
- BRAZIL: Lira rules out impeachment for now
- In brief: Agreement to develop major green projects in Brazil’s Ceará
Central America & Caribbean
- NICARAGUA: Another opposition presidential pre-candidate arrested
- In brief: El Salvador approves new loans for security, infrastructure and education
Mexico
- MEXICO: Private sector slams government over foreign trade rule changes
- In brief: Mexico issues new SDG Euro bond
Southern Cone
- URUGUAY: Ministers grilled by congress
- In brief: Chile to close four coal-powered energy plants
On 6 July, the US Acting Assistant Secretary for Western Hemisphere Affairs, Julie Chung, condemned the arrest of three members of Fundaredes, a prominent human rights NGO in Venezuela.
LatinNews Daily - 06 July 2021
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- HAITI: Moïse names another prime minister
Andean
- VENEZUELA: Maduro gov’t loses appeal to prevent ICC human rights investigation
- In brief: Peruvian exports surpass pre-pandemic levels
Brazil
- BRAZIL: Scandal takes toll on Bolsonaro’s popularity
- In brief: Brazil’s Petrobras launches largest oil exploration platform
Central America & Caribbean
- In brief: Costa Rica signs law to attract investment, pensioners
Mexico
- MEXICO: Governor submits evidence of ‘narco-election’
- In brief: Mexico’s Pemex to operate private oil find
Southern Cone
- PARAGUAY: Senate summons top officials to testify on guerrilla resurgence
- In brief: Uruguay’s inflation exceeds gov’t target
On 5 July Haiti’s President Jovenel Moïse named Ariel Henry as his new prime minister.
LatinNews Daily - 05 July 2021
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- BRAZIL: Bolsonaro threatened by protests and criminal investigation
Andean
- PERU: Castillo’s election now threatened by illegal financing allegations
- In brief: Colombia’s exports rise but yet to recover to pre-pandemic levels
Brazil
- In brief: Brazil sees increase in industrial production
Central America & Caribbean
- EL SALVADOR: Arena targeted in corruption probe
- In brief: El Salvador approves major increase to minimum wage
Mexico
- MEXICO: López Obrador given electricity reform boost
- In brief: Pemex reports a gas leak in the Gulf of Mexico
Southern Cone
- CHILE: Protests mark start of process to draft new constitution
- In brief: Paraguay’s inflation slows down
Washington Watch
- Biden communicates support but also concern to Colombia's Duque
On 3 July, massive anti-government protests were held across Brazil on the same day that the supreme court (STF) authorised an investigation into President Jair Bolsonaro’s alleged knowledge of apparent corruption in a deal to procure coronavirus (Covid-19) vaccines.
LatinNews Daily - 02 July 2021
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- EL SALVADOR: Calls for top Bukele gov't officials to resign
Andean
- PERU: Former presidential candidate calls for military intervention
- In brief: Peru sees strong growth in extractive industry
Brazil
- BRAZIL: Worrying start to the Amazon fire season
- In brief: Record performance for Brazil’s exports this year
Central America & Caribbean
- In brief: US$1.78bn IMF loan for Costa Rica passes initial vote
Mexico
- MEXICO: Foreign ministry strikes DEA deal
- In brief: Mexico’s private sector optimistic on recovery
Southern Cone
- CHILE: Delta case scandal reaches congress
- In brief: Chile’s economic activity shows strong performance
On 1 July opposition parties and civil society groups called for the removal of Conan Castro, the current legal advisor to El Salvador’s President Nayib Bukele; Labour Minister Rolando Castro; deputy security minister and director of prisons, Osiris Luna; and Carolina Recinos, Bukele’s chief of cabinet.
LatinNews Daily - 01 July 2021
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- BRAZIL: New request increases pressure for impeachment
Andean
- VENEZUELA: Former minister accused of having ties to ELN
- In brief: Colombia’s unemployment rate remains high but improves
Brazil
- In brief: Brazil’s unemployment remains at record high
Central America & Caribbean
- CUBA: Covid-19 community transmission confirmed
- In brief: Honduras’s economy shows signs of recovery
Mexico
- MEXICO: Hostility to the press increases
- In brief: UNWTO optimistic on impact of Mexico’s Tren Maya
Southern Cone
- ARGENTINA: Flight restrictions incite further controversy
- In brief: Chile’s unemployment rate improves
On 30 June, a politically heterogeneous group filed a request to impeach Brazil’s President Jair Bolsonaro, adding to the 120-plus impeachment requests that have already landed on the desk of the president of the chamber of deputies, Arthur Lira.