Thursday, September 22, 2016 PDVSA awards oil contracts worth US$3.2BThe logo of the Venezuelan state oil company PDVSA is seen at a gas station in Caracas. In a similar tender renewed this year, Schlumberger NV , Oklahoma-based Horizontal Well Drillers and Venezuelan contractor Y&V won contracts to drill a total of 480 wells at three joint ventures between PDVSA and foreign partners. “Investment amounts to US$3.2 billion, which demonstrates the strength of PDVSA and shows trust in the national oil company,” PDVSA said in a statement. FINE PRINTAfter the Trenaco episode caused friction with partners, PDVSA revived the sunk deal but separated it into six four-year contracts of around 100 wells each. The second of two contracts at Petrocarabobo was not awarded because no valid bid was received, two sources said.

Thursday, September 22, 2016 Google launches new Allo messaging appGoogle-parent Alphabet Inc launched Allo, a messaging app that incorporates Google’s search feature and a chatbot that uses machine learning to “improve” itself over time. The new messaging service, which was unveiled in May, will compete with Facebook Inc’s WhatsApp and Messenger. The much-anticipated launch comes a month after Google rolled out Duo, its video calling app. Allo features a chatbot powered by Google Assistant, a virtual personal assistant like Apple Inc’s Siri. Google has started rolling out Allo and said the app would be available worldwide in the next few days.

Wednesday, September 21, 2016 Foreign sector deficit keeps raising worriesArgentina is still struggling to balance cash inflows and outflows despite the recent devaluation, the latest report from the INDEC statistics bureau showed yesterday. The country posted a current account deficit of US$2.7 billion in the second quarter of 2016, the bureau said yesterday, with financial inflows — mostly debt — compensating for a net loss elsewhere. Overall, US$2.6 billion were wired abroad under different forms of return of investment, an amount very close to the overall current account deficit. The current account is the broadest measure of a country’s foreign transactions encompassing trade, services, and an array of financial flows, including interest payments. Now, even after stabilizing the macroeconomy we are depending on debt to keep the economy a float,” Castiñeira argued.

Tuesday, September 20, 2016 Opposition targets Malcorra over MalvinasLawmakers call for ‘withdrawal’ of support for UN bid, as minister faces showdown in CongressThe government came under sustained heavy fire from opposition lawmakers and even some allies yesterday after it was accused of weakening the strength of Argentina’s sovereignty claim over the disputed Malvinas Islands in its recent accord with the United Kingdom. The agreement seeks to pave the way for more flights from the mainland to the Malvinas and the exploration of hydrocarbons. But the rapprochement came increasingly under threat yesterday after a fierce opposition backlash gained momentum, even as the government downplayed the move. Key members of various opposition groups including the Victory Front (FpV), Renewal Front (FR) and Workers Leftist Front (FIT) united to slam the agreement. “The declarations signed between Argentina and the UK over the Malvinas Islands and approved by the Executive must be sent to Congress urgently,” a resolution released by the main opposition bloc said.

An Afghanistan-born American sought in connection with a bombing that wounded more than two dozen people in New York City and could be linked to other bombs found in New York and New Jersey was taken into custody on Monday after a shootout, a New Jersey mayor said. Ahmad Khan Rahami of Elizabeth, New Jersey, was taken into custody after firing at police officer in Linden, New Jersey, about 20 miles outside New York, Elizabeth Mayor Chris Bollwage said. Investigators believe more people were involved in the New York and New Jersey bombing plots, two US officials told Reuters. The New York Police Department had released a photo of Rahami, 28, and said they wanted to question him about a Saturday night explosion that wounded 29 people in Manhattan's Chelsea neighborhood and for a blast earlier that day in Seaside Park, New Jersey, authorities said.

Soccer — Italian league Monday, September 19, 2016 Juve loses 2-1 at InterIcardi and Perisic score to take Derby d’ItaliaMILAN — A sixth successive Serie A title for Juventus might not be the foregone conclusion it appeared to be at the start of the season. Cracks have started to appear and Juventus lost its perfect start to the season yesterday as Inter Milan came from behind to win the Derby d’Italia 2-1. Mauro Icardi and substitute Ivan Perisic scored for Inter to cancel out Stephan Lichtsteiner’s opener. Inter had won just one of its first three league matches. Indeed no one else had scored for Inter this season until Perisic headed in Icardi’s cross in the 78th.

Monday, September 19, 2016 Barack Obama and his moral compromisesUS President Barack Obama waves as he boards Air Force One for his departure from Joint Base Andrews yesterday. Obama has generally stuck to passive-voice formulations, as he did in Laos, and avoided explicit apology. The New York Times’ analysis of Obama’s Laos speech appeared on page A8 of its September 8 edition. We’ll never know what, say, Latin America would be like today if the United States had done nothing to stop Cuban attempts to spread revolution during the Cold War. Erdogan certainly seems like the lesser of two evils — but Obama’s policy is nevertheless one of many moral compromises during his tenure, including his fateful decision not to intervene militarily in Syria.

President arrives in United States, representatives for Lula to hold event on sidelines Monday, September 19, 2016 Macri jets into New York ahead of UN General AssemblyPresident Mauricio Macri will renew Argentina’s sovereignty claims over the disputed Malvinas Islands during the 71st session of the United Nations (UN) General Assembly, state-run news agency Télam said yesterday. “(Argentine) sovereignty over Malvinas is permanent and a non-negotiable claim of all Argentine people,” Macri told the press after his arriva in New York yesterday, accompanied by First Lady Juliana Awada. Macri’s first speech as Argentine President at the UN General Assembly will take place tomorrow at 11.30am. The representatives will defend the president and denounce the “judicial persecution” levelled against the former president in Brazilian courts. The lawyer denied that their intention was to hinder new President Michel Temer’s participation in the Assembly, which is traditionally opened with Brazil as first speaker.

Monday, September 19, 2016 Syria ceasefire unravels as US, Russia trade accusations over deadly strikesA wounded man grimaces in pain a field hospital after an airstrike in the rebel-held town of Dael, in Deraa Governorate, Syria, yesterday. The air raid by the US-led coalition killed dozens of Syrian soldiers and led to a harsh verbal attack on Washington by Damascus and Moscow. The US military says it may have unintentionally struck Syrian troops while carrying out a raid against the Islamic State group in eastern Syria on Saturday. The seven-day ceasefire was supposed to end at midnight last night, according to a Syrian Army statement issued last week. Syrian state TV reported yesterday that dozens of residents had left rebel-held areas in Aleppo and were taken to shelters in the government-controlled part of the city.

How does absentee voting work? There is an urban legend, there is a myth that absentee votes are not counted. And what is critical to understand is that some of the races are going to be very close so absentee ballots can really make a difference in that respect. For example, 23 percent of all votes cast in Florida were absentee voting. And it is not just for people who are ready to vote with their absentee votes.

Monday, September 19, 2016 Empty seats at final gas hearingMultiple absentees as consultation on hikes endsPublic hearing on proposed natural gas price increases closed yesterday with the notable absence of 100 speakers, an express 80-minute session with only twelve debaters and an almost empty auditorium at the Usina Del Arte exhibition centre. Aranguren also announced that final details of the final natural gas rate hikes will be known in October, and that the Energy Ministry’s team will be holding a meeting today in order to schedule the new and definite increases to be applied from next month. “The state should make the proposal an open one by publishing the costs of natural gas,” state provincial prosecutor Eduardo Allende told the press. “About 40 percent of Argentine homes are (currently) paying 300 pesos (instead of 107 pesos) per month because they have to buy gas cylinders ... We want Argentines to have greater access to the natural gas network”, he concluded. On Friday, the Energy minister promised a progressive elimination of energy subsidies through October 2019, at which point they will equal zero except for Patagonia, Malargue and the Puna, where they will have energy subsidies through October 2022.

Monday, September 19, 2016 Big events and little thingsPlenty was said at the Business and Investment Forum throughout most of last week and all had its value (even the most repeated observations about the Argentine economy might have enlightened at least some newcomers) but what went unsaid or failed to surface also deserves comment. Given that forming global value chains is the name of the game these days rather than the straight investment of national companies (if indeed there are still such things) in other countries, various opportunities might have gone missing — especially when Argentine entrepreneurial talent so often finds it easier to succeed abroad than at home. An event on this scale was always going to aim for the big picture but the sweeping generalizations leave aside the fact that the devil lies so often in the detail. Along the lines of “well begun is half done,” this forum only advanced halfway toward its aims in the best of cases — plenty of follow-up will be needed. The government is certainly not blind to this factor with various roadshows lined up for the future, starting already this week on Wall Street.

Monday, September 19, 2016 Experts advise Rosario to refloat RO-RO planBy Guillermo HáskelHerald StaffProposed US$143-million project would streamline operations for growing vehicle export and import tradeAuthorities of Rosario — the city with the world’s largest grain export port cluster — should consider refloating a long-delayed plan to build a Roll On-Roll Off (RORO) terminal to streamline growing vehicle trade, a team of experts say. Zárate, on the River Paraná, 90 kilometres northwest of Buenos Aires, handles virtually all vehicle trade in the country. It was drawn up by several experts, among them analysts from ENAPRO, the public non-state agency that runs the Rosario port complex. Rosario Port proper is located 300 kilometres northwest of Buenos Aires. The leading vehicle manufacturers are located in the Greater Buenos Aires and Zárate (57 percent), Santa Fe-Rosario (14 percent) and Greater Córdoba (29 percent).

Number of Locals travelling to giant neighbour expected to rise sharply this summer Monday, September 19, 2016 Air travel shows signs of recovery as flights with Brazil take offGol workers inspect a Boeing 737 aircraft at the firm’s maintenance centre at the Tancredo Neves International Airport in Confins, Minas Gerais, Brazil in this Thursday, September 15 picture. Brazil, whose currency the real strengthened for years allowing for more travel abroad, has now gotten cheaper for foreign tourists going there. “We are not adding regular flights because we are occupying the 76 slots we are assigned per week. We are shifting flights from one destination to another to keep demand satisfied,” Gol said. But it is still a fantastic market that we know will come back, just as Brazil,” the director said.

investigation says karter properties was tied to president’s father’s fleg trading Monday, September 19, 2016 New company linked to Macri family in Panama Papers documentsA new company linked to a close friend of the Macri family registered in the Bahamas was exposed yesterday, after an investigation delved deeper into documents leaked from the Mossack Fonseca law firm earlier this year. Now, a new firm, named Karter Properties, has been linked to Fleg, according to an investigation by local daily Página/12. No-one in the Macri family is directly named in the company directory for Karter, possibly a reason why its name did not surface initially, as Fleg Trading did. Fleg Trading played a role as a holding company for the Pago Fácil business of Franco’s holding in the Mercosur giants. This occurred after Fleg Trading replaced the majority shareholder, Socma Americana (a firm where Franco, Mauricio and Mariano were registered).