THE dramatic showdown between Argentina and holders of its defaulted debt looked for a moment last week as if it was about to move one step closer to closure. Instead, the legal and financial tangle has become still more confused.In 2001 the Argentine government reneged on $81 billion of liabilities. It staged two restructurings in 2005 and 2010, in which the owners of 93% of the defaulted debt agreed to exchange their holdings for new securities, at a 65% loss. The other creditors have held Read more [...]

Uruguay's president Jose Mujica, speaking without realising a microphone was on, has said Argentinian president Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner is "worse" than her late husband and predecessor, Nestor Kirchner. "This old hag is worse than the cross-eyed man," Mr Mujica (77) said at an event in Uruguay last night, according to a video posted on Todo Noticias Television channel website and audio posted on Uruguay's El Observador. "He was more of a politician, she's stubborn." Relations Read more [...]