Latest news of Buenos Aires Times

It is unknown if classes in Buenos Aires City will be suspended or go ahead as normal on Wednesday.

City Hall tells schools to carry on with classes, despite new court ruling

Yesterdat 23:26 Federal judge reignites education row between the Buenos Aires City and National governments, annulling previous court order authorising in-person classes at schools. City Hall, however, refuses to back down.

A porteño is tested for Covid-19 at testing centre in Costa Salguero.

Coronavirus pandemic

Second wave surge continues: Argentina reports close to 30,000 new cases

Yesterdat 18:15 Argentina’s second wave coronavirus surge shows no sign of stopping – the Health Ministry confirmed close to 30,000 new cases on Tuesday, lifting total infections to more than 2.74 million since start of the pandemic.

People hold placards as they protest outside of the Courthouse during the trial of former Minneapolis police officer charged with murdering George Floyd in Minneapolis, Minnesota on April 19, 2021. Jurors on Monday began mulling the fate of the white ex-Minneapolis policeman accused of killing African-American George Floyd, a death that sparked a nationwide reckoning on racism and which prosecutors called a "shocking abuse of authority".

KILLING OF GEORGE FLOYD

George Floyd murder trial: ex-Policeman found guilty of murder

Yesterdat 17:33 A jury in the United States reached a verdict on Tuesday in the high-profile trial of the white former police officer charged with murder and manslaughter for the death of African-American George Floyd.

Medical workers wearing personal protective equipment (PPE) take care of a Covid-19 patient inside the Semi-intensive Care Unit (SCU) at Hospital Sao Paulo in Sao Paulo, Brazil, on Friday, July 24, 2020.

Global pandemic

Brazil has Southern Hemisphere's highest overall Covid-19 death rate

Yesterdat 17:25 Brazil, the country with the world's second-highest Covid-19 death toll after the United States, also leads the Americas and the entire southern hemisphere in terms of its overall recorded death rate.

Miguel Henrique Otero (left) and Diosdado Cabello.

EL NACIONAL

Venezuelan newspaper boss decries US$13-million damages ruling

Yesterdat 13:52 Venezuela's Supreme Court of Justice orders 'El Nacional' newspaper to pay Diosdado Cabello US$13.4 million as a punishment in a defamation case.

Health Minister Carla Vizzotti (centre), Presidential Advisor Cecilia Nicolini (left), and the President of Laboratorios Richmond, Marcelo Figueiras, pose for a photograph with a vial of locally made Sputnik V vaccine.

SPUTNIK PRODUCTION

Pharmaceutical firm produces first batch of Sputnik V vaccine in Argentina

Yesterdat 13:44 Argentine pharmaceutical firm Laboratorios says it has complete the first local batch of the Sputnik V vaccine against coronavirus and will be dispatching it to Moscow for quality control checks. Mass production could begin in June.

Migrants who travelled across the Rio Grande to the United States on April 15, 2021 in Roma, Texas.

US Border Crisis

Massive increase of migrant children at Mexico-US border, says UNICEF

Yesterdat 13:09 According to UNICEF, Mexican authorities are recording an average of 275 new migrant children a day waiting to cross into the United States or having been sent back from the northern side of the border.

A group of supporters hold up placards critical of the idea of a new European Super League, outside English Premier League club Chelsea's Stamford Bridge stadium in London on April 20, 2021, ahead of their game against Brighton. The 14 Premier League clubs not involved in the proposed European Super League "unanimously and vigorously rejected" the plans at an emergency meeting on Tuesday. Liverpool, Arsenal, Chelsea, Manchester City, Manchester United and Tottenham Hotspur are the English clubs involved.

European football

FIFA vows 'consequences' for Super League clubs as backlash intensifies

Yesterdat 11:51 Breakaway plan prompts furious reaction from fans and officials, with UEFA President Aleksander Čeferin saying Monday it was motivated by "greediness, selfishness and narcissism."

RUSSIA

Doctors denied access to 'very weak' opposition Russian leader Navalny

Yesterdat 11:50 Alexei Navalny's doctors were again denied access Tuesday to the jailed Kremlin critic, as lawyers for the hunger-striking opposition figure said he was "very weak."

EDUCATION ROW

Supreme Court says it will rule on row over in-person classes

19-04-2021 16:37 Supreme Court declares itself "competent" to take on the issue and will settle the education row between the Buenos Aires City government and the national government.

Economy Minister interview

Argentina has 'valuable support' from European nations for IMF debt talks

19-04-2021 13:44 Economy Minister says that Argentina is making "progress" in its debt restructuring talks with the International Monetary Fund and that the country is receiving “valuable support” from European leaders.

Sputnik shots are loaded onboard an Aerolíneas Argentinas plane.

Covid-19 vaccines

New delivery of 800,000 Sputnik V jabs due to arrive in Argentina

19-04-2021 12:18 Flight carrying more than 800,000 Sputnik V vaccines due to arrive at Ezeiza international airport later this evening. With this latest shipment, Argentina will now have taken delivery of more than nine billion doses.

Coronavirus Pandemic

The P1 or 'Brazilian' variant: what we know about new Covid strain

19-04-2021 11:58 Here's what we know about The "Brazil variant" — a more contagious mutation of the coronavirus that emerged in the Amazon late last year.

Parents in favour of in-person classes demonstrate outside the Olvios presidential residence on Monday morning.

Education row

Casa Rosada to challenge City court's ruling over in-person classes

19-04-2021 10:58 President Alberto Fernández has ordered officials in his administration to oppose the Buenos Aires City government’s move to continue with in-person classes, opening up a legal battle in the courts.

The Shankly Gates at Anfield stadium, home of English Premier League football club Liverpool, on April 19, 2021.

Football bombshell

Super League announcement opens unprecedented conflict in European football

19-04-2021 10:47 A planned breakaway Super League announced by 12 of European football's most powerful clubs and backed by US investment bank JPMorgan is roundly condemned by fans and federations across the continent.

Buenos Aires City Mayor Horacio Rodríguez Larreta delivers a press conference announcing classes will go ahead from Monday.

Education row

Rodríguez Larreta: Schools in City will have classes tomorrow

19-04-2021 00:07 Buenos Aires City Mayor Horacio Rodríguez Larreta announces that he will adhere to court ruling and that schools in the nation’s capital will be open on Monday.

Economy Minister Martín Guzmán taking part in a video conference organised by the Council of the Americas (COA) and the Americas Society (AS), from his office in Buenos Aires, on June 23, 2020.

Bloomberg

Argentina seeks Paris Club deal amid IMF talks, Guzmán says

18-04-2021 22:18 Argentina is pressing the Paris Club to renegotiate debt as separate talks to strike a deal with the International Monetary Fund drag on, says Economy Minister Martín Guzmán.

Handout picture released by the Presidency showing employees handling a shipment of 864,000 doses of the AstraZeneca vaccine from the Netherlands, as part of the Covax programme, at Ministro Pistarini International Airport in Ezeiza, Buenos Aires Province, on April 18, 2021.

COVID-19 VACCINES

Second Covax delivery of 864,000 AstraZeneca doses arrives

18-04-2021 22:07 Argentina took delivery of a new shipment of Covid-19 vaccines on Sunday, receiving 864,000 doses of the AstraZeneca shot via the World Health Organisation's COVAX scheme.

People protest against President Alberto Fernández and new restrictions to mitigate the spread of the novel coronavirus, on Avenida 9 de Julio in Buenos Aires, on April 17, 2021.

Coronavirus pandemic

Protesters take to streets to reject tightened Covid measures

18-04-2021 08:20 Protesters took to the streets in Buenos Aires on Saturday to demonstrate against government’s tightened measures against Covid-19. Main rallies take place at Obelisk and outside Olivos presidential residence.

United: Axel Kicillof and Máximo Kirchner are the political leaders most listened to by Cristina Fernández de Kirchner – and both have the 2023 election on their minds.

COVID RESTRICTIONS

Kirchnerite leaders escalate rhetoric against 'opposition directed by Macri'

17-04-2021 15:37 Axel Kicillof and Máximo Kirchner criticise Buenos Aires City Mayor Horacio Rodríguez Larreta, defend new Covid restrictions and talk up influence of former president Mauricio Macri on opposition coalition.

by Rosario Ayerdi

Carlos Tevez belongs to the lucky few in football who – thanks to his long years in England, Italy and China – enjoy total financial security.

Jugador del Pueblo?

Carlos Tevez seeks to avoid paying Argentina's new wealth tax

17-04-2021 09:54 Boca Juniors striker files court injunction to avoid paying the country's new wealth tax, the latest example of the difficulty in making millionaires comply with the levy.

EDITORIAL

We do need some education

17-04-2021 09:26 Last year’s economic havoc has been quantified, but there is no way of measuring the losses to come from extended suspensions of classroom education.

Protesters react to the president's announcement of new tightened Covid restrictions outside the Olivos presidential residence on Wednesday night.

LAST SEVEN DAYS

What we learned this week: April 10 to 17

17-04-2021 09:21 The pick of the stories that caught our eye over the last seven days in Argentina.

MINISTER ON TOUR

Guzmán heads for Moscow after searching for ‘consensus’ on European tour

17-04-2021 09:16 Economy Minister Martín Guzmán heads to Moscow for talks on vaccine production, IMF debt restructuring and deepening strategic ties.

IMF Western Hemisphere Director Alejandro Werner.

IMF DEBT TALKS

IMF official says timing of new debt deal depends on Argentina

17-04-2021 09:11 IMF Western Hemisphere Director Alejandro Werner says a lot of “advanced work” on a new financing programme for Argentina has been completed. But the timing of a new deal depends on the Alberto Fernández administration, he adds.

From left to right: Patricia Bullrich, Horacio Rodriguez Larreta, María Eugenia Vidal. At the back, Mauricio Macri.

CITY MAYOR, NEXT PRESIDENT?

Rodríguez Larreta’s labyrinth: standing firm while staying moderate

17-04-2021 09:06 Buenos Aires City Mayor Horacio Rodríguez Larreta marks out his differences with the government and the hardliners in the opposition Juntos por el Cambio coalition.

by Gabriel Ziblat

CFK’S CORRUPTION CASES

Cristina & the courts: Outstanding cases against Argentina's vice-president

17-04-2021 08:59 Dollar futures case dismissed against former president Cristina Fernández de Kirchner, who led nation between 2007 and 2015. But Argentina’s current vice-president – who denies all the charges filed against her and claims she is a victim of “judicial and political persecution” – still faces a number of other allegations in the courts.

In this June 14, 2016 file photo, former Public Works Secretary Jose Lopez, center, is escortED by police outside the a police station in the outskirts of Buenos Aires, Argentina.

CORRUPTION & THE COURTS

Ex-Public Works secretary José López seeks release from jail

17-04-2021 08:53 Former government official, who was found with millions of dollars and weapons in a bag outside a convent, seeks release after almost five years behind bars without a firm sentence.

CHURCH SEX ABUSE SCANDALS

Plaintiffs in second Próvolo sex abuse trial demand 'end to delays'

17-04-2021 08:41 Victims and relatives complain defence lawyers for two nuns and several other women are stalling trial into historic child sex abuse at Próvolo Institute in Mendoza Province.

Sensationalist TV presenter, Mauro Viale.

OBITUARY

Journalist and TV presenter Mauro Viale dies aged 73 after Covid infection

17-04-2021 08:38 Sensationalist TV presenter, journalist and presenter passes away just a few days after his last show.

Pianist and conductor Daniel Barenboim, 78, poses during an interview at the grand Palais in Aix-en- Provence, on April 3, 2021.

MUSIC

Daniel Barenboim: tireless maestro won’t let pandemic slow him down

17-04-2021 08:29 Argentina-born maestro has been on stage for 71 years and says he is always ready to "start again from scratch."

Referee Mauro Vigliano found himself at the centre of a media furore after awarding a soft penalty.

ARGENTINE FOOTBALL

Spare a thought for the man in the middle

17-04-2021 08:19 Top-flight referee Mauro Vigliano found himself in the middle of media furore this week, after an honest error in the high-profile Racing Club-Independiente derby.

by Dan Edwards

Why should the political response of Argentina and Peru to extreme socio-economic disintegration not be repeated here?

AND THAT REMINDS ME...

Second waves and tsunamis also electoral

17-04-2021 08:13 The extreme fragmentation of the vote in Peru not only brings back memories from recent Argentine electoral history, but might well also be the shape of things to come for the midterm elections in October.

by Michael Soltys

AS I SEE IT

Joe Biden sounds the retreat

17-04-2021 08:04 Biden, like Trump before him, decided that the time had come to pull all his country’s troops out of Afghanistan. The only difference is in the departure date.

by James Neilson

CORONAVIRUS PANDEMIC

Rodríguez Larreta vows to challenge school closures before Supreme Court

17-04-2021 08:00 Buenos Aires City Mayor says he will do “everything possible to have children in class on Monday,” after president orders schools in AMBA to close for two weeks.

CORONAVIRUS PANDEMIC

Daily Covid cases clear 29,000; Fernández refuses to roll back restrictions

17-04-2021 07:54 President Alberto Fernández warned Friday that he will not tolerate a "rebellion" against newly tightened restrictions despite heavy criticism, as second wave slams Argentina.

An intensive care unit of one public hospital in Florencio Varela.

CORONAVIRUS PANDEMIC

Exhausted and with few beds free, doctors struggle amid second wave

17-04-2021 07:45 Emotions run high in the intensive care unit of one public hospital in Florencio Varela, Buenos Aires Province, where fatigued doctors are battling to save the lives of Covid-19 patients.

Horacio Rodriguez Larreta dressed as a school teacher.

POLITICS & THE PANDEMIC

The school feud

17-04-2021 07:33 Fernández and Rodríguez Larreta, much to the dismay of the hawks in both coalitions, gave moderation a shot. Now the rift is back.

by Martín Gambarotta

POLITICS & THE PANDEMIC

It’s Kici-Time!

17-04-2021 07:25 The emergence of Kicillof and his worldview is part of an electoral strategy aimed at antagonising the opposition, particularly the figure of City Mayor Horacio Rodríguez Larreta.

by Agustino Fontevecchia

Students in a classroom wearing face masks during the Covid-19 pandemic.

NEW RESTRICTIONS

Argentina's schools become political battleground after curbs

16-04-2021 17:13 Decision to shut down schools has become the latest point of political conflict between the federal government and the City of Buenos Aires, run by the opposition, as the country heads into a second wave of Covid-19.

In this file photo taken on April 08, 2021 a man takes a pictures of his wife being inoculated with the CoronaVac vaccine, developed by China's Sinovac laboratory against COVID-19, at a vaccination centre mounted at Carrasco airport in Ciudad de la Costa, Canelones, Uruguay.

Global pandemic

From hero to zero: Uruguay's coronavirus boomerang

16-04-2021 17:02 Uruguay is going through its worst moment of the pandemic, months after being hailed as an example.

Alejandro Werner, director of the western hemisphere for the International Monetary Fund, speaks during an interview in New York on Thursday, February 28, 2019.

IMF debt talks

IMF official says timing of new debt deal depends on Argentina

16-04-2021 13:55 IMF Western Hemisphere Director Alejandro Werner says a lot of “advanced work” on a new financing programme for Argentina has been completed. But the timing of a new deal depends on the Alberto Fernández administration, he adds.

A medical worker holds a vial of China's CoronaVac vaccine against the coronavirus disease.

Coronavirus Pandemic

China's Coronavac 80% effective at preventing Covid deaths, says Chile study

16-04-2021 13:12 A study conducted in Chile found that China's Coronavac vaccine against Covid-19 was 67 percent effective at preventing symptomatic Covid-19 and 80 percent at preventing death.

A sign indicating a property for rent hangs outside a building in the Palermo neighbourhood of Buenos Aires.

Bloomberg

Government's plan to stabilise rents sends prices skyrocketing in BA

16-04-2021 10:58 Landlords in Buenos Aires have raised the rent on apartments more than 60% ahead of a new law that gives the government control over price increases.

this file photo taken on February 18, 2020, Brazil's former president Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva is pictured during a meeting with deputies and senators of the Workers' Party (PT) in Brasilia.

BRAZIL UNDER BOLSONARO

Brazil's Supreme Court confirms annulment of Lula graft convictions

15-04-2021 23:16 Supreme Court upholds ruling annulling Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva's corruption convictions, clearing the way for him to run for a new presidential term next year.

ECONOMIC INDICATORS

Argentina records highest inflation rate in 18 months: 4.8%

15-04-2021 17:35 Inflation in March reached 4.8% – the highest figure since September 2019. Prices have jumped 12.4% in first three months of year, 42.6% over last 12 months.

The economic rebound forecast for Latin American this year faces risks from the recent resurgence of Covid-19 and slow vaccine roll-outs, the International Monetary Fund said.

INTERNATIONAL MONETARY FUND

IMF: Latin America rebound imperiled by virus resurgence

15-04-2021 16:52 The economic rebound forecast for Latin American this year faces risks from the recent resurgence of Covid-19 and slow vaccine roll-outs, the International Monetary Fund said.

copa américa

President Fernández urges caution ahead of Copa América

15-04-2021 15:41 President Alberto Fernández on Thursday cast doubt over the upcoming Copa América the country is due to co-host with Colombia, insisting that the evolution of the coronavirus pandemic must be taken into consideration.

Buenos Aires City Mayor Horacio Rodríguez Larreta delivers a press conference.

Coronavirus pandemic

Rodríguez Larreta slams 'inexplicable' decision to close schools

15-04-2021 13:44 Buenos Aires City Mayor Horacio Rodríguez Larreta attacks President Alberto Fernández's decision to close schools without consultation and declares he will challenge move before Supreme Court.

People hold banners depicting Brazil's President Jair Bolsonado reading "The Bolsonaro strain, world danger" during a protest of members of leftist parties outside the Brazilian Embassy in Buenos Aires, on April 14, 2021, amid the coronavirus pandemic.

BILATERAL RELATIONS PLUNGE

Fernández hits back at Bolsonaro over military's role during pandemic

15-04-2021 12:47 President Alberto Fernández responded to a mocking attack from his Brazilian counterpart Jair Bolsonaro on Thursday, following the Argentine leader's announcement of tightened restrictions to tackle the Covid-19 pandemic.

FOOTBALL

Bielsa denies he is close to signing new contract with Leeds

15-04-2021 12:24 Marcelo Bielsa denies La Nación reporting claiming he is "very close" to signing a new two-year contract with Leeds United.

A woman walks past a supermarket in Buenos Aires.

ECONOMIC INDICATORS

Inflation in Argentina speeds up, prompting government crackdown

15-04-2021 09:44 Argentina’s inflation accelerated last month at the fastest pace since President Alberto Fernández took office in late 2019, experts believe, prompting the government to tighten its unorthodox controls over companies.

President Alberto Fernández announces a tightening of Covid-19 restictions.

NEW RESTRICTIONS

President extends curfew, shutters schools to curb Covid-19

15-04-2021 00:48 In 18-minute address to nation, Alberto Fernández says health system must be protected and tightens restrictions in Buenos Aires Metropolitan Area, hoping provincial governments will follow suit. Citizens stage pot-banging protest, opposition denounces new rules.

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi (centre) waves to supporters in a rally meeting during the ongoing Phase 4 of West Bengal's assembly election, at Kawakhali on the outskirts of Siliguri on April 10, 2021.

Raisina Dialogue

In an age of competition, we must not forget the spirit of cooperation

14-04-2021 23:52 The Covid-19 pandemic has presented us an opportunity to reshape the world order, to reorient our thinking.

by Prime Minister Narendra Modi

Argentine Health Minister Carla Vizzotti at a press conference on 14 April, 2021.

Second Wave

Vizzotti concerned by rising coronavirus cases and new strains

14-04-2021 18:18 With a sharp rise in coronavirus cases in the past 10 days and concerns over the spread of new strains in national territory, government officials are meeting to assess the impact of the latest lockdown measures.

Electronic boards at an exchange house in Buenos Aires.

BLOOMBERG

Argentina’s peso mess is delivering windfall profits to brokers

14-04-2021 15:12 In Argentina, financial markets are all but dead. From stocks to bonds to traditional foreign-exchange venues, trading volumes are razor thin. Except, that is, in one unusual corner.

Bernie Madoff — the mastermind behind the worst financial scam in history.

Obituary

Bernard Madoff, mastermind of giant Ponzi scheme, dies at 82

14-04-2021 12:37 Bernard Madoff, the Manhattan investment adviser who promised stellar returns to his A-list clients and instead defrauded them of more than US$19 billion in history’s largest Ponzi scheme, has died in jail at 82 years old.

Pope Francis receives Economy Minister Martín Guzmán.

GUZMÁN IN EUROPE

Guzmán discusses debt with Pope Francis at the Vatican

14-04-2021 12:33 Economy Minister Martín Guzmán met with Pope Francis at the Vatican on Wednesday, the latest stop on his European tour seeking support for Argentina's IMF debt talks.

Presidential candidate for the Free Peru Party, Pedro Castillo (left), and fellow candidate for the Popular Force Party, Keiko Fujimori, speaking during the televised debate organised by the National Electoral Jury in Lima.

Peru election 2021

Castillo and Fujimori, rivals vying for Peru's presidency

14-04-2021 11:41 Far-left unionist Pedro Castillo and right-wing populist Keiko Fujimori will vie for the presidency of Peru in a run-off election on June 6.

Picture of a wine-tasting room seen from a cellar in DiamAndes, a winery in the Uco Valley, San Carlos Department, in the Argentine province of Mendoza, taken on April 1, 2021. The winery was designed by the Mendoza-based Bórmida & Yanzón studio, which specialises in wine architecture and has built more than 30 wineries since 1988, many of which have received national and international awards.

Architecture & viniculture

Specialist architects putting Argentine wine on another map

14-04-2021 11:02 Mendoza is synonymous with Malbec wine, but what's not so well known is that the province has become a reference for wine cellar architecture.

Vice-President Cristina Fernández de Kirchner leaves court in this file photo.

CFK CLEARED

‘Dollar futures’: Case against Cristina Fernández de Kirchner dismissed

13-04-2021 22:16 Former president and host of former officials cleared of fraud in relation to futures contracts for the purchase of dollars; three-judge panel unanimously rules to dismiss allegations against vice-president, one of eight graft cases she faces in courts.

A citizen has his temperature checked in Buenos Aires.

Second wave surge

Argentina breaks daily Covid record: 27,000 Covid-19 in 24 hours

13-04-2021 17:36 Health Ministry officials confirm record 27,001 cases over past 24 hours, along with 217 fatalities. Buenos Aires Province registers more than 14,000 new infections, as intensive care units in AMBA region reach 70% occupancy.

copa américa

China's Sinovac to donate vaccine jabs for Copa América

13-04-2021 15:11 South American footballers will be given the Chinese Sinovac Covid-19 vaccine ahead of the Copa América that starts in June, following donation of 50,000 doses.

Keiko Fujimori, presidential candidate of the Popular Force party, speaks during an election night rally at the party's headquarters in Lima, Peru, on Sunday, April 11, 2021.

Peru election 2021

Peruvian socialist set to face Fujimori in battle of extremes

13-04-2021 14:25 Peru’s next leader will be either a rural schoolteacher who vows to nationalise industries, or the polarising right-wing daughter of a jailed strongman.

“Default would only make bad worse. All too many people seem to think that there is nothing to lose with default, given the absence of any overseas credit or investment, but even in these desperate times anything would be better".

Global pandemic

Record sovereign defaults in pandemic-hit 2020: S&P

13-04-2021 14:18 Ratings agency S&P there were a record seven defaults on sovereign debt repayments in 2020, the first year of the coronavirus pandemic.

Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro (L) greets supporters as he leaves the Alvorada Palace in Brasilia, on April 13, 2021.

BRAZIL UNDER BOLSONARO

Brazil judge halts parts of Bolsonaro's decrees to relax gun laws

13-04-2021 14:14 Judge Justice Rosa Weber on Brazil's Supreme Federal Court on Monday suspended parts of four decrees issued by President Jair Bolsonaro relaxing the country's gun control laws.

This handout picture released on April 6, 2021 by the Russian Foreign Ministry shows India's Foreign Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar as he attends a press conference following his meeting with his Russian counterpart in New Delhi.

An Indian perspective

Reimagining diplomacy in the post-Covid world

13-04-2021 13:47 Fashioning a robust response to the Covid-19 challenge is set to dominate global diplomacy in 2021.

by Dr. Subrahmanyam Jaishankar

In this picture released by Peruvian news agency Andina, Peruvian presidential candidate for the Peru Libre (Free Peru) Party, Pedro Castillo, waves as he leaves a polling station in Cajamarca, Peru, after casting his vote during general elections on April 11, 2021.

PERUVIAN ELECTION 2021

Far-left schoolteacher takes lead as Peru counts presidential votes

12-04-2021 22:23 Union leader and teacher Pedro Castillo takes surprise, though slim, lead in Peru's presidential election, and will likely face a right-wing rival in a run-off in June, incomplete results showed Monday.

Picture released by the Peruvian National Service of Protected Natural Areas (SERNANP) on April 10, 2021 of a new species of marsupial frog found during a research study developed in the moorland and humid forest of the Cordillera de Colan, in a protected area of the Amazon region between 3,136 and 3,179 meters above sea level, in northeastern Peru.

Wildlife

New species of frog unearthed in Peruvian Amazon jungle

12-04-2021 16:28 A new species of marsupial frog has been discovered in Peru's Amazon jungle during a study in the humid tundra and mountainous woodland area of the Cordilleras de Colan.

Elderly people wait to receive a dose of the Sputnik V vaccine against COVID-19 at the Victorino Santaella Hospital in Los Teques, Venezuela on April 9, 2021, amid the ongoing coronavirus pandemic.

Global pandemic

Maduro says Venezuela will produce Cuban Covid-19 vaccine

12-04-2021 14:22 Venezuela has signed an agreement to produce the Cuban coronavirus vaccines in its laboratories according to President Nicolas Maduro.

Ecuadorean presidential candidate Guillermo Lasso in Colta, Ecuador, on April 1, 2021.

Ecuador run-off

Lasso: the Catholic conservative pledging to change Ecuador's destiny

12-04-2021 11:29 Guillermo Lasso has returned the conservative right to power in Ecuador, winning Sunday's presidential election after two defeats that failed to discourage him.

The Tango floating liquefied natural gas unit YPF.

Bloomberg

Argentina seeks winter LNG boost as shale gas dreams falter

12-04-2021 11:19 Argentina is poised to more than double its purchases of liquefied natural gas (LNG) on the spot market this winter, in a bid to avoid a deficit.

Ecuadorean President-elect Guillermo Lasso (centre) speaks to the press next to his wife María de Lourdes Alcivera (right) and ex-Guayaquil mayor Jaime Nebot as he celebrates his victory in Guayaquil, Ecuador on April 11, 2021.

Ecuador run-off

Former banker Guillermo Lasso elected Ecuador's next president

12-04-2021 10:41 Career banker Guillermo Lasso has won Ecuador’s presidential election after a late surge in support, pledging "opportunities and prosperity" for pandemic-battered and debt-laden economy and a political system riven by gridlock.

Tobacco plantation farms in the northern Argentine province Jujuy.

Medical Marijuana

Jujuy governor encourages tobacco producers to switch to cannabis

12-04-2021 09:00 Jujuy Province Governor Gerardo Morales has suggested that tobacco farmers begin growing cannabis instead, potentially opening up a multi-million-dollar market – but the province's tobacco chamber isn't fully on board.

President Alberto Fernández (left) and PAMI chief Luana Volnovich.

Coronavirus pandemic

PAMI chief warns agency has no more Covid ICU beds left in City

11-04-2021 08:56 PAMI chief Luana Volnovich warns public health agency has no more Covid-19 ICU beds available for pensioners and retirees in Buenos Aires City; Argentina surpasses 2.5 million confirmed cases.

Alberto Fernández and Mauricio Macri go head-to-head in the first presidential debate this weekend. Also participating are Roberto Lavagna, Juan José Gómez Centurión, José Luis Espert and Nicolás Del Caño.

IMF DEBT PROBE

Government to be plaintiff in IMF debt probe against ex-president Macri

11-04-2021 07:58 The State will act as a plaintiff in a case investigating whether former president Mauricio Macri (2015-2019) broke the law in securing a record US$57-billion loan from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) back in 2018.

Rhiano, a 14-year-old born in what used to be the old City zoo and Cleo, a 12-year-old originally from a Canadian zoo, are headed to the Wild Animal Sanctuary in Keenesburg, Colorado.

CONSERVATION

Ecoparque transfers two rare Bengal tigers to the United States

10-04-2021 21:54 Two rare white Bengal tigers, Rhiano and Cleo, are being transferred from the City Ecoparque to a spacious sanctuary in the US state of Colorado, City government announces.

The City Of Buenos Aires under new restrictions.

CORONAVIRUS PANDEMIC

Restrictions imposed as second wave slams Argentina

10-04-2021 09:32 President Alberto Fernández unveils new measures; Over the past five days, country has recorded more than 104,000 new cases.

EDITORIAL

Second waves and third worlds

10-04-2021 09:26 The income tax cuts finally approved by the Senate last Thursday carry every appearance of being the right thing for the wrong reasons.

THE WEEK

What we learned this week: April 3rd- April 10th

10-04-2021 09:22 The stories that caught our eye over the last seven days in Argentina.

INCOME TAX REFORM

Congress approves ‘ganancias’ reform, raising income tax floor

10-04-2021 09:06 Income tax bill exempts almost 1.3 million taxpayers from qualification; Companies also set to benefit from similar reform.

Productive Development Minister, Matías Kulfas.

BLOOMBERG

Government mulling oil price controls to tap Vaca Muerta, says Kulfas

10-04-2021 08:57 Argentina’s government is pushing for long-term oil price controls to boost Vaca Muerta production.

POLITICS & THE PANDEMIC

Covid tsunami

10-04-2021 08:52 The second wave is here and it already looks challenging. A winter of discontent looms ahead of the midterm elections.

by Martín Gambarotta

LITHIUM

Argentina talks up potential of growing lithium industry

10-04-2021 08:48 Investment in the lithium sector over the last three years has surpassed US$1.1 billion, while jobs created have tripled, according to government data.

In a country where distrust of banks makes people more likely to stuff cash under a mattress than in a checking account, the Ualá mobile banking app has made inroads. Now it's looking to Mexico.

BLOOMBERG

Argentina’s Ualá to buy billionaire Eurnekian’s digital bank

10-04-2021 08:40 Argentine fintech Ualá reached an agreement to buy local billionaire Eduardo Eurnekian’s digital bank Wilobank, according to people with direct knowledge of the matter.

OBITUARY: DUKE OF EDINBURGH

Prince Philip: The strength behind the crown

10-04-2021 08:34 Queen Elizabeth II's husband often grabbed headlines for his gaffes and racial insensitivity. But for many royalists, the Duke of Edinburgh was a silent stalwart, who shelved his personal ambitions to support the British monarch.

ARGENTINE FOOTBALL

AFA’s restrictions may prove too little, too late for local football

10-04-2021 08:28 A costly shutdown looks inevitable for Argentina’s top flight, after more than 100 players test positive for Covid-19.

by Dan Edwards

FOOTBALL IN ARGENTINA

AFA tightens restrictions as players, coaches test positive for Covid-19

10-04-2021 08:21 Game’s authorities order return to strictest protocols as virus sweeps through clubs.

The PASO primaries system now stands at a crossroads between postponement, suspension and even elimination.

AND THAT REMINDS ME...

Passing up PASO

10-04-2021 08:16 The PASO primaries system now stands at a crossroads between postponement, suspension and even elimination. Neither the government nor the opposition speak with a single voice on this issue where public health realities are as much a factor as political preferences.

by Michael Soltys

For poorer countries, among them Argentina, salvation is still a long way off. The vaccination programme has been slow, confused and marred by nasty quarrels over who should be first in line for a jab.

AS I SEE IT

Back to square one

10-04-2021 08:11 For poorer countries, among them Argentina, salvation is still a long way off.

by James Neilson

With the government and the opposition doing what they should, the system has proven ineffective at generating Hegelian synthesis that sparks progress.

GRIDLOCKED

‘Imbeciles,’ restrictions and elections

10-04-2021 08:06 It is common to hear people in Argentina complaining that issues have become politicised, meaning that powerful people representing conflicting interests have gridlocked an issue.

by Agustino Fontevecchia

Martín Soria, Argentina's justice minister.

INTERVIEW: JUSTICE MINISTER

Martín Soria: ‘The manipulation of justice by the Macri family is nothing new’

10-04-2021 07:52 Argentina’s new Justice minister is ready to press ahead with judicial reform. He defines himself as simply a Peronist, laying stress on judges who visited Mauricio Macri for private meetings during his presidency.

by Rosario Ayerdi

Rafael Bielsa, Argentina’s current Ambassador to Chile.

INTERVIEW – PERIODISMO PURO

Rafael Bielsa: ‘Alberto Fernández is very far from being a puppet’

10-04-2021 07:42 Rafael Bielsa, Argentina’s current Ambassador to Chile, on the pandemic, the president, Peronism and bilateral relations.

by Jorge Fontevecchia

People with coronavirus symptoms queue outside a public hospital to be tested.

CORONAVIRUS PANDEMIC

Covid-19 second wave arrives with exhausted economy, citizenry

10-04-2021 07:26 Government introduces new restrictions after surge in infections, hoping to tread thin line between economic pain and healthcare gain.

A group of health agents moving a covid patient.

CORONAVIRUS PANDEMIC

Political differences laid bare as City, Province split on measures

10-04-2021 07:20 Buenos Aires Province Governor Axel Kicillof warns that “Covid tsunami” is hitting Argentina as new restrictions are introduced.

CORONAVIRUS PANDEMIC

Fernández says more coronavirus vaccines will arrive in ‘mid-April’

10-04-2021 07:14 President expresses confidence that “sufficient vaccines” will arrive in “middle of April” to “accelerate pace” of mass inoculation programme.

Handout file photo taken on June 10, 2020 released by Argentina's Presidency of President Alberto Fernandez wearing a face mask with the colors of Argentina's national flag and the map of the Malvinas / Falkland Islands at the Olivos Presidential residence in Olivos, Buenos Aires, on the Day of the Assertion of the Argentinian Rights over the Malvinas (Falklands), South Georgia, the South Sandwich and Surrounding Maritime Spaces.

Malvinas Islands

Argentina rejects British military manoeuvres and missile launch on Malvinas

09-04-2021 21:14 Argentina's government protests to British authorities over military manoeuvres and the launching of missiles on the Malvinas (Falklands) Islands, as well as a complaint to neighbouring state Uruguay after it allowed a British military plane to re-fuel on its turf.

People wait to receive a dose of the Sinovac Biotech Ltd. Covid-19 vaccine at a clinic in Montevideo.

Global pandemic

Uruguay, once Covid haven, suffers record infections and deaths

09-04-2021 15:25 Uruguay is grappling with one of the world’s highest Covid infection rates, with scores killed weekly, schools shut and a confused and weary population searching for answers.

A medical worker assists a COVID-19 patient at the Dr. Abelardo Santos Regional Hospital in Belem, Para state, Brazil, on March 26, 2021.

Global Pandemic

Brazilian Senate to probe Bolsonaro's handling of pandemic

09-04-2021 11:55 A judge from Brazil's supreme court on Thursday ordered the Senate to create a commission to investigate President Jair Bolsonaro's handling of the pandemic, after requests from 32 of Brazil's 81 senators.

DUKE OF EDINBURGH

Queen Elizabeth II's husband Prince Philip dies aged 99

09-04-2021 10:04 Longest-serving royal consort in British history, who was a constant presence at Queen Elizabeth II's side for decades, died on Friday aged 99, Buckingham Palace has announced.