International
Argentina revives special ‘soy dollar’ to boost reserves
| By AFP |
Argentinian soy farmers will be able to sell their product at a preferential exchange rate, as the country seeks to shore up its central bank reserves, according to a decree published Monday.
Argentina is one of the world’s largest exporters of soybeans and soy oil. However, with year-on-year inflation of 88 percent and constant fears of currency devaluation, farmers often hoard their supplies waiting for a better rate.
The plan is to “increase reserves so that the economy reaches the end of the year with $10 billion available,” Secretary of Industry Jose de Mendiguren told Futurok radio.
The incentive kicks off Monday and will last until December 30.
Instead of selling soy products for the tightly-controlled official rate of around 166 pesos per dollar, producers will receive a much higher 230 pesos.
A similar preferential soy rate was applied in September, when soybean sales earned the country almost $8 billion.
Argentina imposed a raft of exchange controls in 2019 in its constant battle to keep dollars in the country and fight low foreign exchange reserves.
These include blocking citizens from buying more than $200 in greenbacks per month.
This has led to a multitude of dollar exchange rates. Demand for scarce dollars is so high that they are exchanged for over 300 pesos at the “Blue Dollar” rate on the streets of Buenos Aires.
The “Qatar Dollar” imposes higher taxes on those using their credit cards abroad — such as those spending valuable dollars at the World Cup in Doha.
Meanwhile, the “Coldplay Dollar” was the name given to the higher rate applied to entrance tickets to international shows.
“Nobody wants various exchange rates, the economy must be normalized and stabilized. But it is a solution, a tool for the exceptional circumstances Argentina is experiencing,” De Mendiguren said.
Argentines have so little faith in their currency that many exchange it into dollars as fast as they can and store it in safes or under their mattresses.
Under an International Monetary Fund deal to refinance debt of more than $44 billion, Argentina must boost its international reserves and reduce its fiscal deficit.
International
U.S. and Mexico Reach Deal to Address Water Deficit Under 1944 Treaty
The United States and Mexico have reached an agreement to comply with current water obligations affecting U.S. farmers and ranchers and for Mexico to cover its water deficit to Texas under the 1944 Water Treaty, the U.S. Department of Agriculture said in a statement.
The department уточified that the agreement applies to both the current cycle and the water deficit from the previous cycle.
On Monday, U.S. President Donald Trump accused Mexico of failing to comply with the water-sharing treaty between the two countries, which requires the United States to deliver 1.85 billion cubic meters of water from the Colorado River, while Mexico must supply 432 million cubic meters from the Rio Grande.
Mexico is behind on its commitments. According to Washington, the country has accumulated a deficit of more than one billion cubic meters of water over the past five years.
“This violation is severely harming our beautiful crops and our livestock in Texas,” Trump wrote on Monday.
The Department of Agriculture said on Friday that Mexico had agreed to supply 250 million cubic meters of water starting next week and to work toward closing the shortfall.
Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins, quoted in the statement, said Mexico delivered more water in a single year than it had over the previous four years combined.
Trump has said that if Mexico continues to fall short of its obligations, the United States reserves the right to impose 5% tariffs on imported Mexican products.
Mexico’s Deputy Foreign Minister for North America, Roberto Velasco, said that a severe drought in 2022 and 2023prevented the country from meeting its commitments.
International
Several people shot in attack on Brown University campus
Several people were shot on Saturday in an attack on the campus of Brown University, in the northeastern United States, local police reported.
“Shelter in place and avoid the area until further notice,” the Providence Police Department urged in a post on X. Brown University is located in Providence, the capital of the state of Rhode Island.
U.S. President Donald Trump said on his social media platform Truth Social that he had been briefed on the situation and that the FBI was on the scene.
At 5:52 p.m. local time (11:52 p.m. GMT), Brown University said the situation was still “ongoing” and instructed students to remain sheltered until further notice.
After initially stating that the suspect had been taken into custody, Trump later posted a second message clarifying that local police had walked back that information. “The suspect has NOT been apprehended,” the U.S. president said.
International
Colombia says it would not reject Maduro asylum request as regional tensions escalate
The Colombian government stated on Thursday that it would have no reason to reject a potential asylum request from Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro should he leave office, as regional tensions persist over the deployment of U.S. military forces in the Caribbean since August.
“In the current climate of tension, negotiations are necessary, and if the United States demands a transition or political change, that is something to be assessed. If such a transition results in him (Maduro) needing to live elsewhere or seek protection, Colombia would have no reason to deny it,” said Colombian Foreign Minister Rosa Villavicencio in an interview with Caracol Radio.
However, Villavicencio noted that it is unlikely Maduro would choose Colombia as a refuge. “I believe he would opt for someplace more distant and calmer,” she added.
Colombian President Gustavo Petro also commented on Venezuela’s situation on Wednesday, arguing that the country needs a “democratic revolution” rather than “inefficient repression.” His remarks followed the recent detention and passport cancellation of Cardinal Baltazar Porras at the Caracas airport.
“The Maduro government must understand that responding to external aggression requires more than military preparations; it requires a democratic revolution. A country is defended with more democracy, not more inefficient repression,” Petro wrote on X (formerly Twitter), in a rare public criticism of the Venezuelan leader.
Petro also called for a general amnesty for political opponents and reiterated his call for forming a broad transitional government to address Venezuela’s prolonged crisis.
Since September, U.S. military forces have destroyed more than 20 vessels allegedly carrying drugs in Caribbean and Pacific waters near Venezuela and Colombia, resulting in over 80 deaths.
U.S. President Donald Trump has repeatedly warned that attacks “inside Venezuela” will begin “soon,” while Maduro has urged Venezuelans to prepare for what he describes as an impending external aggression.
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U.S. and Mexico Reach Deal to Address Water Deficit Under 1944 Treaty
Several people shot in attack on Brown University campus
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