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Latin American stocks were mixed to lower, with Brazilian and Mexican shares sinking on continued worries about rising interest rates in developed countries, such as the U.S. Bucking the downtrend, however, Argentine issues managed solid gains.
Brazil's Bovespa Index tumbled 386.92 points, or 1.06%. Mexico's benchmark Bolsa Index plunged 284.46 points, or 1.47%, while Argentina's Merval Index jumped 26.46 points, or 1.66%. Brazilian stocks dropped, extending recent losses, on continued concerns about rising U.S. inflation and interest rates amid a jump in oil prices. Investors fear that recent signs of inflationary pressure will lead the U.S. Federal Reserve to continue its tightening cycle longer than expected, potentially diverting investment flows away from emerging markets like Brazil. In local news, mining giant Companhia Vale do Rio Doce said it reached an agreement on 2006 iron ore price contracts with Arcelor. Under the agreement, iron ore fines will be raised by 19%. CVRD reached a series of similar price accords with other steelmakers last week. Meanwhile, a major investment bank upgraded American Depositary Shares in telecom carrier Tim Participações to "outperform" from "peer perform" following a recent share price correction. In other analyst actions, another investment bank reshuffled its Latin America equities model portfolio, dropping Brazilian logistics firm ALL in favor of airline Tam. The bank also cut Chilean fixed-line carrier CTC, and raised its exposure to seamless steel pipemaker Tenaris, which is owned by Techint. Elsewhere, Mexican shares sank on continued uncertainty over the outlook for U.S. interest rates. In local economic news, the Finance Ministry said Mexico posted a US$ 464 million trade surplus in April as exports rose 13.9% to US$ 19. 80 billion, while imports grew just 7.3% to US$ 19. 33 billion. On the corporate front, a major investment raised its price target for bottler Femsa to US$ 1 22 on a "dramatically improved" outlook for Mexico's domestic beer market. Meanwhile, the bank also raised its recommendation on shares of tortilla maker Gruma SA to "buy" from "neutral," citing valuation. Broadcaster TV Azteca said it made cash distributions to shareholders of US$ 68 million, or $0.02 per CPO share. The payout was part of the US$ 90 million approved for 2006 at shareholder meetings in February and April. Argentine issues gained ground, bucking the region's downtrend, in a quiet news day for the local market. Among the day's few headlines, an influential investment bank raised its exposure to seamless steel pipemaker Tenaris, saying the recent plunge in the company's shares has brought "valuations to more attractive levels." Thomson Financial - www.thomsonfinancial.com
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The small, coastal town of Condé is located just a twenty minute's drive from João Pessoa, the capital of Paraíba. The Northeast of Brazil has historically been a place of encounter and mixing between peoples. For millenia groups of indigenous people fished, farmed, migrated and sometimes fought along this large, fertile area. 
The Brazilian diplo-MÁ-cia (bad diplomacy) carries on its accelerated course towards the non-acknowledgment of human rights, although sometimes it takes pleasure in saying that it does precisely the opposite. The visit of Iran's president, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, is another example of a diplomatic omission that verges on hypocrisy. 
On July 4, 2006, representatives of Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay and Uruguay met in Caracas to sign the protocol for the entrance of Venezuela into the Southern Common Market (Mercosur). After two and a half years, the protocol was approved by the legislative bodies of Argentina and Uruguay, and as of now it may be only days away from being ratified by the continent's economic megalith, Brazil. 
Some sectors of the fight against AIDS have suggested that Thabo Mbeki, the former president of South Africa, committed genocide through his absence from the fight against the illness in his country throughout his two terms. 
One hundred and eleven years after Brazil abolished slavery, the number of workers deprived of their freedom is still huge. They raise cattle, produce charcoal, sugar cane or timber. Some of them, most undocumented Bolivians, work in basements of small apparel factories in São Paulo and other metropolis. 
On November 7, 2009 a few friends and I had an opportunity to take a look inside a Brazilian jail outside the city of Rio de Janeiro. We were able to take some amateur footage of our experience on video (see link below). It's no surprise, of course, that the typical Brazilian jail lacks some of the functionality of those in North America or Europe, but our experience that day was quite shocking. 
Depletion of the Amazon Rainforest is not a new concern facing environmentalists, biologists, ecologists, and a growing number of the Amazonian indigenous peoples. For decades they have feared for the fate of the world's most biologically diverse and species-rich hothouse. 
Geisy Arruda made history this week in Brazil, but for all the wrong reasons. What began as a poorly planned fashion statement has become a worldwide tale. Geisy decided to wear a pink mini-dress to her private college in São Paulo state, and after that, all hell broke loose. 
The push of vigilante groups in Rio de Janeiro's favelas (shantytowns) in the last three years is the most important and alarming information of the just-released study by the Rio de Janeiro University's Violence Research Center (Nupev-Uerj). 
A dispute over drug trafficking territory in Rio de Janeiro has intensified lately, leaving in its wake unprecedented acts of violence, such as the downing of a police helicopter in the northern zone of the city on October 17. Three policemen died and another two were injured. This event has drawn the attention of the international media, who are raising the issue of public security for the 2016 Olympics to be held in Rio.
Hope I'm wrong.
Rap Roledei