Sunday, May 08, 2011

The Week in Buenos Aires, Argentina - May 8, 2011

The week kicked off with news that expat William Walters who was extradicted last year to the US on charges of securities fraud had been convicted in a Denver court. The FBI tracked Walters to Buenos Aires after his passport was flagged by Interpol. Bloomberg gives some insight on how official inflation figure began to get out of whack with what you see in the supermercados and shops.  The article dates the divergence to the firing of Graciela Bevacqua in 2007. Beleaguered commuters on the even more beleaguered Sarmiento line set fire to the trains coaches during Monday morning´s rush hour. Global Post reported on the LatAm's immediate reaction to Osama bin Ladin; days later, Fidel Castro called the killing "an abhorent deed." Argentina´s efforts to restrict imports raised more concerns;  India, a big importer of Argentine goods, won assurances from the Minister of Industry who says Argentina will buy $150-200 million in drugs from India. A tale of two Riojas:  the Province of La Rioja won its fight with the Spanish wine region of the same name. Mobile broadband connections are up 160% and fixed broadband is up 17% according to Cisco Systems. Argentina is under international banking pressure again to comply with money- laundering rules; the US-backed FATF has given a June deadline. Eduardo Duhalde restarted his campaign for president Friday night with a big rally at a downtown arena; while lambasting the current president and her policies and administration, the speech was notable for reaching out to rival party UCR. A coalition between Duhalde and the UCR could give President Fernandez de Kirchner a contender. Now comes word that Buenos Aires Mayor Mauricio Macri has dropped out of the race. The Buenos Aires Shankees expat baseball team announced celebrations to mark the end of their regular season, Saturday, May 14th.  They face Los Cardinales at Shankee Stadium in Parque Roca, Avenida Coronel Roca 3950 in Capital.  Game time is 2pm with round-trip transportation provided from Plaza Italia at 15 pesos per person. Don´t forget today is Mother´s Day in the US, Canada, and even Uruguay! Send your news and events to letters@yanquimike.com.ar

Previous Weeks in Buenos Aires, Argentina

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