Cuban leader Fidel Castro, Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez and top officials from fourteen other Caribbean countries met for talks last week on a Venezuelan plan to sell fuel more cheaply to the region at a time when world oil prices remained tenaciously high.
Leaders and officials planned to sign an accord to set up a joint company, as proposed by Mr. Chavez, that would distribute Venezuelan fuel on preferential terms.
UK´s Virgin Atlantic released traffic figures this week which showed there´s seen a 26 percent hike in business class travelers in the course of its last financial year.
The increase is attributed to three factors; a 5 percent increase in available seats, following the delivery of new aircraft and the launch of new services to destinations like Sydney, Delhi and Las Vegas; a partial recovery in the business travel market, and market share shift to Virgin Atlantic from rival airlines following the launch and roll out of the award-winning Upper Class Suite.
While Tokyo and Osaka in Japan are the most expensive cities in the world, followed by London, which remained top of the list in Europe because of its steep housing and transport costs, MERCOSUR capitals are among the cheapest burgs, according to the latest report from Mercer Human Resource Consulting.
The report based on data from last March includes 144 cities in over 40 countries, featuring New York as base reference with 100 points. This means Tokyo figures with 134,7 points and Asuncion, Paraguay, at the bottom of the list with 40,3 points.
Brazilian holdings overseas increased 14,6 percent in 2004, totaling $94,7 billion, according to the latest report from the Brazilian Central Bank, which attributes the expansion to the greater internationalization of the country´s economy.
The Central Bank also revealed that total foreign investment in Brazil, according to the latest available data from September 2004, reached $412 billion, while Brazil´s assets overseas tabbed $143.4 billion, a negative balance of $268.7 billion. This means Brazil is a net recipient of foreign investment.
Airbus announced orders and commitments for 280 airliners from around the world. The 280 orders and commitments are worth around $33.5 billion.
Customers in the Middle East and India have made up the bulk of the orders and commitments, with Qatar Airways announcing it would acquire 60 Airbus A350s, while startup Indian carrier IndiGo will be accounting for the largest single deal with a hundred Airbus A320 Family aircraft.
The Puerto Rican agency´s budget will reach $119 million in fiscal 2006, from $104.3 million in fiscal 2005, an increase of 14%. Since fiscal 2001, the Tourism Co.´s total budget has increased by a whopping 59 percent, from $74.7 million to $119 million.
Despite its multimillion-dollar budget, the Tourism Co. has fallen short of its expectations to increase the island´s tourism industry and its contribution to the local economy. Stats obtained from the Tourism Co. indicate a mere 10.3 percent increase in hotel stays from fiscal 2001 to fiscal 2004.