Argentine Peso Gets Lift From Record Soy Harvest as Volatility Gauge Sinks [Bloomberg]
Argentine currency traders are reducing expectations for peso fluctuations to the lowest since March as a record soybean harvest swells export revenue in South America’s second-biggest economy. Economists predict it will weaken to 4.2 per dollar by year-end, according to the median of 13 estimates in a Bloomberg survey. The consensus forecast was 4.5 per dollar a year ago.

Buenos Aires on a leash [The Christian Science Monitor]
Argentine dogs live a life of pampered sophistication in this elegant city as dog walkers can earn more than teachers here.

Debate over legalising abortion intensifies in Argentina [BBC]
After the recent vote by the Argentine Congress to legalize same-sex marriage, the legalization of abortion seems set to be the next big debate in the country.

American, JetBlue partner on select flights at JFK [Crains]
JetBlue, light on overseas options, links passengers to Europe, South America and Japan via American flights, while American sends domestic passengers to 18 new cities via JetBlue.

BA Construction Activity Rises 10% [InvestBA]
Recent headlines regarding Buenos Aires real estate sales activity have been improving steadily this year, and La Nación says builders are starting to feel equally optimistic. During the first five months of 2010, the construction industry posted a 10% increase in new projects under development, while the sale of condominiums and single-family homes advanced 7.1%, according to the Universidad Argentina de la Empresa (UADE).

Lower Congress Approves Glacier Protection Law [The Argentina Independent]
After 12 hours of debate, Argentina’s Chamber of Deputies approved a law that would limit mining and oil drilling activity in the country’s Andean ice fields on Thursday morning. The legislation’s provisions are similar to a glacier protection law that President Cristina Fernández de Kirchner controversially vetoed in 2008.

Maradona to continue as Argentina coach [AP]
Diego Maradona will reportedly remain as coach of Argentina’s national team, a decision he is expected to announce next week after meeting with Argentine Football Association president Julio Grondona.

What’s the deal with Buenos Aires? [NY Post]
Argentina’s capital is overhyped, overcrowded and terrifically annoying. It also might be one of the best places you’ll ever visit.

Private Parking Lots Forced To Offer Space For Bikes In Buenos Aires [TreeHugger]
In a city where bike theft is a very good reason to make you doubt about riding somewhere, providing parking facilities is almost as important as creating new bike paths. This is the case in Buenos Aires (and many cities around the world), and the reason why it’s so good to hear that the government has pushed a new law to provide several bike-parking facilities, including spaces inside private parking lots at lower rates. If you ride in Buenos Aires or are thinking about doing it, you need to read this.

Related posts:

1. Buenos Aires News: Edition 9 I’ve decided to bring back the Buenos Aires News postings...
2. Buenos Aires News: Edition 12 The biggest news by far in the past week is...
3. Buenos Aires News: Edition 11 Argentina winning its group in the World Cup and advancing...

Argentina legalizes gay marriage [Los Angeles Times]
Argentina on Thursday became the first nation in Latin America to legalize same-sex marriage, turning aside protests from the Roman Catholic Church to give gay couples the same rights as their heterosexual counterparts.

Doctor: Maradona OK and mulling choices [USA Today]
Maradona’s doctor said Monday the Argentina coach was doing well and had not slipped back into using drugs and alcohol since his team was eliminated from the World Cup with a 4-0 loss to Germany in the quarterfinals. (whew!).

Garbage Disposal an Overpowering Problem in Buenos Aires [Latin American Herald Tribune]
Buenos Aires has no idea what to do with its garbage – at least that seems to be the gist of the current controversy about what to do with all the trash in the Argentine capital, whose city dumps could collapse in two years from the increasing amount of waste it churns out.

Argentine ‘dirty war’ general gets life sentence [Associated Press]
Some of the most notorious figures of Argentina’s “dirty war” were convicted Thursday of kidnapping, torturing and murdering 22 people at the beginning of the 1976-1983 military dictatorship when the country cracked down on leftist dissent.

Argentina gay marriage row serves broader government aim [Washington Post]
Argentina’s government is fighting to get a gay marriage bill through Congress to shore up its leftist credentials ahead of a 2011 vote and to steal the limelight from opposition-led proposals.

Argentina Government Increases Minimum Income Tax Threshold By 20% [FOX Business]
Argentina’s government has increased the minimum threshold for paying income tax by 20%, Economy Minister Amado Boudou said Thursday.

How to spot a fake $100 peso bill [La Nacion]
This is a good video on how to spot a fake bill. This can especially be a problem for tourists and new expats.

Lawmaker proposes Maradona monument [AP]
An Argentine legislator has proposed building a monument to honor Diego Maradona, whose future as coach of the national soccer team has been uncertain since it was eliminated in the World Cup quarterfinals by Germany.

Adoption Scandal: Argentina Hounds a High-Profile Mom [Time]
This is the tale of the enmity of three women: the first is perhaps the richest in Argentina; the second is the President of the country; the third, a grandmother in search of the children of desaparecidos,” the 30,000 or so mostly young people who disappeared in the military junta’s death camps from 1976 to 1983. The object of their contention are two adopted children, a brother and a sister, who stand to inherit an immense fortune — or see it shrink if their genes betray a past that might help dramatically diminish their mother’s business empire.

Argentina claims victory on bond deal [Inquirer.net]
More than two-thirds of Argentina’s creditors have accepted a deal with Buenos Aires ending their long-running debt dispute, the Economy Ministry said Monday.

Argentina’s Government Vows To Maintain Stakes In Companies [Fox Business]
Argentina’s government says it has no plans to sell the stakes in local companies that it inherited when it nationalized private-sector pension funds in late 2008, as it would damage the interests of both the state and the companies.

Honda to start making automobiles in Argentina in 2011 [More Tech News]
Honda will start manufacturing automobiles in Argentina in 2011, when the Japanese automaker”s plant opens in Campana, a city on the outskirts of Argentine capital Buenos Aires, company executives said.

Related posts:

1. Buenos Aires News: Edition 11 Argentina winning its group in the World Cup and advancing...
2. Buenos Aires News: Edition 9 I’ve decided to bring back the Buenos Aires News postings...
3. Buenos Aires News: Edition 10 As one may expect, there was a lot of World...

Pepsi To Go Naked If Argentina Wins The World Cup [AdAge]
In a brilliant bit of marketing, Pepsi has announced that it too will “go naked” as Argentine coach Diego Maradona promised, if Argentina wins the World Cup. Pepsi announced that the company’s soft drink bottles will be sold for a week in Argentina with no label if that country wins the soccer tournament.

Is it madness to love Diego Maradona? [MailOnline]
He bounces up and down on the touchline with that silver beard and bottle-black hair… Wild-eyed with rage and waving imaginary cards in one moment, kissing and hugging his players in happy tears the next, the madness of Diego Maradona is there for all to see… But there’s no taking your eyes off him. And the craziest thing of all is that it actually seems to be working.

These walls can speak [Sydney Morning Herald]
If you believe everything you read, Buenos Aires is a city of sexy, pouting Latinos who dance the tango on every street corner, eat steak morning and night and are born with a football attached to their toes. I’m hoping to experience something far from the cliches and sign up for a Graffiti Mundo tour to explore the street art of the city’s northern suburbs.

Argentine rights leader defends DNA database [AP]
Argentina’s leading newspaper publisher must pay the consequences if genetic tests show the children she adopted three decades ago were stolen from prisoners of the dictatorship, a leading human rights activist says.

Fernandez ‘Unpredictability’ Repels Investors After Argentina’s Debt Swap [Bloomberg]
Argentina may fail to revive interest from companies even after concluding an $18.3 billion debt restructuring offer. The government lacks “prudent and predictable” policies…

Remodeling Project of La Bombonera Stadium Buenos Aires [GreatFI]
I haven’t seen this article anywhere else, but it states that the Boca Juniors football club plans to renovate its stadium in advance of the Argentina Copa America 2011. The pictures look impressive.

Amnesty International Expresses Concern over Women’s Rights in Argentina [The Argentimes]
Expressing concern over the death of Miriam Flores, a migrant worker from Paraguay, Amnesty International Argentina announced in a press release its continued support of the enforcement of Law 26.485, and demanded that President Christina Fernández “assume as a priority the situation of violence against women” in Argentina.

Related posts:

1. Buenos Aires News: Edition 9 I’ve decided to bring back the Buenos Aires News postings...
2. Buenos Aires News: Edition 10 As one may expect, there was a lot of World...
3. World Cup Fever Coming to Argentina If you’re like me (from the States), the World Cup...

Argentina nabs alleged Colombian money launderer [Associated Press]
A suspected Colombian drug trafficker who operated under the radar for years in Argentina was arrested as he walked near a Buenos Aires shopping mall. He was living under an assumed identity in a suburban neighborhood.

Argentina inflation slows slightly in May [Reuters]
Argentine consumer price inflation slowed slightly to 0.7 percent in May as food prices eased, the government said on Friday, but analysts said the real rate was nearly twice as high.

Buenos Aires mayor finds laws apply to him, too [CNN]
Mauricio Macri, the chief executive of Buenos Aires, Argentina, has been fined for riding a motorcycle without a helmet. He faces much larger legal trouble, having been indicted this year on charges of illegal wiretapping.

Argentine Union Seeks 30% Raise in Minimum Wage [Bloomberg]
Argentina’s biggest union wants to raise the minimum wage 30 percent to 2,000 pesos ($510) per month because of inflation, newspaper El Cronista reported.

Argentine Nobelist Perez Esquivel recalls torture [AP]
Adolfo Perez Esquivel, who won the 1980 Nobel Peace Prize for his work exposing abuses during Argentina’s military dictatorship, finally testified against his captors, describing his torture and crediting international pressure for saving his life.

World Cup 2010: Diego Maradona denied beef supply for Argentina team [Telegraph.co.uk]
Agriculture officials put a stop to Maradona’s team’s plans to bring in steak supplies from home. “They never got a permit to bring the beef in. They wanted to, but it was declined,” a chef at the University of Pretoria centre said, adding that the flamboyant Argentine coach had failed to live up to his diva reputation so far.

Argentina May Move to Lift Capital Controls Post-Swap [Bloomberg]
Argentina will likely move to lift capital controls following the conclusion of the country’s $18.3 billion debt swap, the head of the Buenos Aires Stock Exchange said. Under regulations put in place under then-President Nestor Kirchner, international investors must deposit 30 percent of the funds they bring into Argentina with the central bank for a year.

Hollywood ending in Buenos Aires [The Guardian]
The slums of Latin America are growing, but so is the local film industry, which is alive with productivity and homegrown talent. In Villa 21, one of Buenos Aires’ largest slums, ‘actor, producer, scriptwriter and most of all squatter’ Julio Arrieta sees culture as a way out of ignorance and unemployment.

Pay Rises 43% as Argentines See Inflation Triple Official Rate [Bloomberg]
Argentine labor leaders are demanding the biggest wage increases in more than 15 years to compensate for inflation they say is running at more than three times the official rate of 10.7 percent a year.

Argentine Hake On the Brink of Collapse [IPS]
The Argentine hake (merluza) fisheries of the southern Atlantic Ocean, among the world’s leaders in the white fish market, are on the verge of collapse due in part to the indifference of the Argentine people, who are apparently more interested in beef, a staple of their diet. The Wildlife Foundation issued a call this year for Argentines to avoid buying hake filets less than 25 centimeters long, in order to discourage the capture of small fish.

Work suffers, parties thrive during World Cup [AP]
Leonardo Munoz, wearing a foot-tall blue-and-white wig, is ready to bare it all for the glory of Argentina.

Complicated Tango for Argentina’s Coach and Star [The New York Times]
They will remain bound through the rest of the World Cup: Maradona, 49, and Messi, soon to be 23. One perhaps the greatest soccer star ever, the other the best of his generation. One volatile, the other quiet. Both gripped in a complicated relationship with Argentina and with each other, dancing a mesmerizing soccer tango as Argentina seeks its first title since Maradona hoisted the trophy in 1986 with help from the so-called Hand of God.

Related posts:

1. Buenos Aires News: Edition 9 I’ve decided to bring back the Buenos Aires News postings...

If you want up-to-the-minute Buenos Aires updates, follow the Buenos Aires Life Twitter account.

Can Argentina’s Diego Maradona work his magic? [Miami Herald]
Argentina’s World Cup hopes are riding on whether volatile coachDiego Maradona can work the same kind of magic he did as a player.

Messi, the surest bet to shine in South Africa [The Globe and Mail]
The Argentine star could set the world alight – if he survives Maradona’s madness.

Ugi’s PIzza Inflation Index [Buenos Aires Photographer]
The Argentine government continues to under-report the true level of inflation in Buenos Aires.  This blogger took matters into his own hands by reporting how much the cost of pizza at his favorite pizza place has gone up since the year 2000.

In Buenos Aires, tourists charged the same as locals [ToursHelp]
An older article, but interesting in that it recounts that the Buenos Aires tour bus was charging different prices for locals than for tourists. A consumer advocacy group complained, and now the price is the same – a higher $70 pesos for all.  Obviously, this means locals can pretty much no longer afford to take the bus ride. So, was justice done?

More American expatriates give up citizenship [NY Times]
Another older article, that is also interesting. “Amid mounting frustration over taxation and banking problems, small but growing numbers of overseas Americans are taking the weighty step of renouncing their citizenship.”

Sleep-in journalists aim to save newspaper [guardian.co.uk]
Journalists fighting to block the shutdown of the Argentine newspaper Crítica have been on strike since 29 April, when they received no pay cheques.

Per capita beef consumption drops to 56 kilos [The Argentine Post]
Argentine beef consumption has dropped from 70.3 kilos to 56.3 kilos in the first half of this year due to smaller supply and increased prices.

Domestic plane tickets hiked 15% [Buenos Aires Herald]
Plane tickets on domestic flights to all 30 destinations in Argentina went up by an average of 15 percent this past week.

No related posts.

DENGUE FEVER ALERT FROM US EMBASSY IN ARGENTINA
This Warden Message is to alert U.S. citizens in and traveling to Argentina that the Argentine Ministry of Health reported 2,200 confirmed cases of dengue fever in Argentina as of March 26, 2009.  According to a ministry spokesman, the majority of cases have been reported in the northern Argentine province of Chaco, although some cases have also been reported in Salta, Catamarca and Jujuy provinces.  Dengue fever is a mosquito-transmitted illness, for which there is no vaccine, and no specific treatment.  Dengue hemorrhagic fever is a rare, more severe and sometimes fatal form of the disease.  For the latest information, you may visit the ministry’s website at http://www.msal.gov.ar/htm/site/default.asp or call 0800-222-1002.

The Ministry of Health recommends eliminating sources of standing water, which form breeding grounds for mosquitoes.   To further reduce the risk of contracting dengue, Argentine officials and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommend wearing clothing that exposes as little skin as possible and applying a repellent containing the insecticide DEET (concentration 30 to 35 percent) or Picaridin (concentration 20 percent or greater for tropical travelers).  Because of the increased risk of Dengue fever and the ongoing risk, practicing preventative measures is recommended by the CDC.  For further information on Dengue fever, please visit the CDC’s website at: http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/dvbid/dengue/index.htm.

Just something to keep an eye on.

UPDATE (31.3.09): Two women in Chaco, Argentina have died from dengue and the number of cases continues to rise.

UPDATE (7.4.09): Argentine health authorities confirmed Monday that there are 69 cases of dengue in the country’s capital Buenos Aires. The infected people have either traveled to Bolivia or to the 19 provinces where the epidemic was spreading, said the officials. The number of dengue cases in the country have reached 5,000, according to official data.

No related posts.

Tourism Declines Again In November [The Argentine Post]
The Argentine Post is reporting that the number of people visiting Argentina declined for the second consecutive month in November, falling 8% to 188,705 people from a year earlier. The decline comes after a 6% drop the previous month and seems to be yet another indication that Argentina will find it hard to escape negative fallout from the global economic meltdown this year.

How Palermo’s Streets Got Their Names [Trendy Palermo Viejo]
An interesting article about how the streets of the Palermo neighborhoods in Buenos Aires got their names – names of countries, legislators and scientists.

Argentine Peso Worst Latin Currency on Devaluation [Bloomberg]
Another article about the falling Argentine peso and the government’s willingness to let it gradually fall. They report that it may drop to 3.9 or 3.95 by the end of 2009.

They’re Here: New Transit Fares Take Effect [Yanqui Mike]
25% price increases have taken effect in the subways, buses and trains of Buenos Aires.  La Nacion reports that the new fares are causing some confusion too.

Argentine Inflation at 7.2% for 2008 – Yeah, Right [D for Disorientation]
The official governemtn numbers put inflation in Argentina at a low 7.2% for 2008, the smallest rate in 4 years.  However, independent sources put it at about three times higher than that.

Buenos Aires Playa [BA Travel Guide]
Stuck in Buenos Aires for the hot summer?  Head to the beach in the city.  From January 16 to February 28, 2009, the Buenos Aires city government presents “Buenos Aires Playa” (Buenos Aires Beach), an oasis for those residents and visitors who have to spend the summer in the city.  The two man-made “beaches” feature sand, beach chairs, sun shades, water fountains, food, activities and more.

Argentina: American climber dead on Aconcagua [AP]
A U.S. man died Friday while scaling Argentina’s Aconcagua mountain, becoming the fifth climber to perish this month on the highest peak in the Americas.

Related posts:

1. Buenos Aires Contacts: Gabriel Celano, Immigration Attorney Welcome to the first in a series of posts that...

20% Of Kids Say It’s Ok To Pay Bribes

Argentina Strikes Give Travelers Holiday Headache [Bloomberg]
Subway workers in Argentina walked off their jobs today, disrupting travel for as many as one million commuters as employee demands for increased pay and job security disrupt banks, taxi service and the holiday season. Gas station owners and about 140,000 bank workers plan to stop work next week. Cab drivers are threatening to stay off the roads Dec. 24 and 25, when many residents will try to shuttle between holiday parties.

Human remains found in Argentine detention center [Associated Press]
Inside a once-secret detention center where political dissidents were tortured and killed during Argentina’s dictatorship 25 years ago, forensic anthropologists have discovered a pit containing 10,000 bone fragments.  The first discovery of human remains inside a detention center confirms the testimonies of hundreds of survivors who have said for years that authorities tortured, killed and burned the bodies of political opponents, they said Tuesday…

Argentine lower house passes questioned tax breaks [Reuters]
Argentina’s lower house passed early on Thursday a package of tax breaks that the administration hopes will stimulate the economy but critics say could encourage money laundering instead.The law includes huge tax cuts on undeclared offshore funds that are repatriated, tax incentives for companies that put under-the-table workers on the books, and deals for tax evaders who sign up for payment plans.

Argentina’s Buenos Aires Scrooges Forced to Rescind Ban on Christmas Carolers [LAHT]
The decision by the government of Buenos Aires this year not to authorize the tradition of caroling in the street on Thursday sparked a heated controversy among defenders of the Christmas spirit which eventually was settled by the revocation of the measure.

Argentina looks to taxis to get economy moving [AP]
Argentina’s government hopes 15,000 new taxis will help get the economy moving. President Cristina Fernandez says the government will offer taxi drivers credits on half the value of a taxi at a below-market interest rate of 11 percent It’s part of a series of programs to boost production and ease credit in South America’s second largest economy.

Going pinker on the Plata – Gay Tourism in Buenos Aires [Economist]
Gay tourists have flocked to Buenos Aires since Argentina’s 2002 currency devaluation made it one of the world’s most affordable destinations. Tourism officials reckon that at least a fifth of foreign visitors to the city are gay.

Related posts:

1. Send Your Holiday Cards to the States – For Free! Ok, so you’re down here in Buenos Aires, enjoying the...

Possible Transportation Strikes
Americans residing or traveling in Argentina should be aware that the following transportation-related groups have announced plans to strike nationwide in the coming days.  The parties are seeking increased
salaries to offset the effects of steep inflation.

• Fuel stations plan to close Friday, December 12, and Saturday, December 13.
• Subway personnel expect to strike on Friday, December 12.
• Taxi drivers will not operate on December 24 and 25. The taxi drivers’ union has said it may also strike on December 31 and January 1, 2009.

American citizens are advised to adjust their travel plans accordingly and monitor local media reports for developments, as some of these strikes could be canceled or postponed.

Americans residing or traveling in Argentina are encouraged to register with the U.S. Embassy in Buenos Aires through the Embassy website http://argentina.usembassy.gov and the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Consular Affairs’ website www.travel.state.gov, where the current Worldwide Caution, Travel Warnings, Travel Alerts, and Country Specific Information for Argentina can be found.

Related posts:

1. Argentina Entrance Fee To Go Into Effect UPDATE: As of June 4, 2010, the Argentina entrance fee...

Fires Burn Over 1,200 Acres In Argentina

Argentine automakers to sell at cost, protect jobs [Reuters]
Argentine automakers will sell basic models at cost through state-subsidized loans in a plan to protect jobs in Latin America’s third-biggest economy from the global economic slowdown. Local plants of Renault SA, General Motors, Peugeot, Ford Motor Co. and other automakers will participate in the government’s plan to protect 150,000 auto industry jobs and to keep production from falling steeply next year.  Now this is an interesting idea!

Argentine Unions Want Floor for Peso Devaluation [Bloomberg]
Argentina’s union leaders want the government to put a limit on the peso’s devaluation, claiming that a softer currency will fuel inflation and undermine workers’ buying power.

Madge blows $1 million in hotel bill [The Times of India]
Madonna reportedly shelled out a million dollars on the Four Seasons hotel in Buenos Aires after she and her crew checked out from its posh premises. The megastar blew an alleged 9,000 dollars per night to stay at the hotel’s private mansion while her 200 backing dancers, singers, make-up artists, choreographers, managers and security checked into another 110 rooms – costing at least 600 dollars each.  Now, I know where at least part of my ticket money went!

Argentina Gun Swap Wildly Successful [IPS]
As a disarmament campaign launched 17 months ago in Argentina nears its end, the government and civil society groups involved in the initiative announced that it has far exceeded even the most optimistic projections, despite the lack of publicity.  The Interior Ministry reported that the programme, in which people voluntarily swap their firearms for cash, has so far collected over 102,000 guns and 721,000 munitions, all of which were destroyed.

Why Have So Many Restaurants Closed in Buenos Aires?  (english version) [La Nacion]
An interesting read, about the closure and pending closures of almost 300 restaurants in Buenos Aires due to the economic crisis. Many of these restaurants had relied on the tourist market and thus increased prices so significantly that they lost the locals. It will be intersting to see if the new visa tax that goes into effect on January 1 will cause a further decline in tourism and what the fallout will be.

Related posts:

1. Argentina Entrance Fee To Go Into Effect UPDATE: As of June 4, 2010, the Argentina entrance fee...