January 28, 2014

EXCLUSIVE Maersk opens dedicated line for Americas
Dutch conglomerate grew 4.3 percent in the region last year, faster than its overall global growth

Danish shipping conglomerate Maersk announced plans this month to open a container shipping company to better address their customers’ needs in the intra-Americas market. The new carrier, SeaLand, will be a wholly-owned subsidiary of A.P. Moller, and will officially commence operations at the beginning of 2015, Latin Business Chronicle reports.

Castro and Rousseff inaugurate Cuba's Mariel port 
New terminal cost $957 million financed largely by BNDES development bank 

Cuban President Raúl Castro and his Brazilian counterpart Dilma Rousseff officially inaugurated the Mariel container terminal. The project cost $957 million and was financed largely by Brazil's  BNDES development bank and built by Odebrecht. The port will be managed by Singapore's PSA International and replace Havana as Cuba's most important port, Reuters reports.

Coca-Cola Femsa drops to 21-month low
Shares fell after PepsiCo announced investment plans

Coca-Cola Femsa's shares dropped 3.7 percent, a 21-month low, to $10.30, after PepsiCo announced last week investment plans  for Mexico worth $5 billion over the next five years. The company, currently the world's biggest franchised Coca-Cola bottler, has dropped 13 percent since the beginning of year, when a junk-food tax came into effect, Bloomberg reports.

Latin American foreign ministers gather in Cuba for summit
Topics discussed included traditional crops such as quinoa and territorial disputes

Foreign Ministers from 33 countries in the region, except the U.S. and Canada, gathered Monday in Havana, Cuba, for a summit of Western Hemisphere countries. Among the topics discussed were the cultivation of traditional crops, territorial disputes and social initiatives. The heads of state of the countries will meet Tuesday and Wednesday for the second CELAC summit, ABC News reports.

Mexico's trade deficit reached $1 billion last year
Country's total exports hit $380.2 billion, 2.6 percent more than in 2012

Mexico's trade deficit reached $1 billion last year, compared to $46 million a year before, according to data from the country's statistics agency, INEGI. The deficit grew due to a combination of a 25.8 percent reduction in the petroleum products surplus and a 17.5 percent drop in the non-petroleum products deficit, INEGI said, GlobalPost reports.

MOREOVER

Peru mining exports fall in first 10 months of 2013 SteelGuru

Brazil airports overhaul plan seen as another blow to investors Reuters

Italy's Letta says EU able to deal with Argentina crisis Yahoo

Mexico's economy unexpectedly stalls Bloomberg

Argentina's shale industry lures international oil companies Rigzone