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☆ Mexican Senator Xochitl Galvez hailed as opposition candidate for 2024 election
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-03 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/5] Mexican Senator Xochitl Galvez speaks at a rally to be announced as the opposition Broad Front for Mexico 2024 presidential candidate, in Mexico City, Mexico September 3, 2023. REUTERS/Henry Romero Acquire Licensing RightsMEXICO CITY, Sept 3 (Reuters) - Thousands of supporters celebrated the nomination of Mexican Senator Xochitl Galvez on Sunday as the 2024 presidential candidate of an opposition alliance set to take on the country's ruling party. Galvez, a spirited communicator who has energized the opposition, is seen as the main candidate to take on President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador's National Regeneration Movement (MORENA), which is due to announce its own candidate on Sept. 6. Supporters could be heard chanting "we are going to win" as they waved flags and banners supporting Galvez's nomination and the alliance. Representatives of the coalition, the center-right PAN, the leftist PRD and the once-powerful PRI party - which supported Galvez at the expense of its own challenger, Beatriz Paredes - had called for Galvez's nomination earlier in the week.

Persons: Xochitl Galvez, Henry Romero, Galvez, Andres Manuel Lopez, Lopez Obrador, Hector Chavez, Beatriz Paredes, Aida Pelaez, Fernandez, Cassandra Garrison, Alberto Fajardo, Liamar Ramos, Deepa Babington, Diane Craft Organizations: REUTERS, Regeneration, Frente Amplio, PAN, PRD, PRI, Thomson Locations: Mexico, Mexico City, MEXICO

☆ Mexican peso hits 7-1/2 year high vs dollar, further gains eyed
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-28 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

The currency, which has been dubbed the "super peso" in some quarters, including by its most prominent cheerleader, President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador, strengthened by more than 1.3% in morning trading to 16.63 per dollar. "What's happening with the peso right now is due to weakness in the dollar, but also because of optimism surrounding the Mexican peso," said Banco Base analyst Gabriela Siller. "And with this international investors keep buying Mexican pesos and it may keep appreciating," she added. Data pointing to softening U.S. inflation on the one hand and better-than-expected growth data on the other has helped weaken the dollar and boost the peso, which could continue firming to 16.40 to the dollar, Siller said. Reporting by Anthony Esposito and Aida Pelaez-Fernandez, editing by Deepa BabingtonOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador, Gabriela Siller, Siller, Anthony Esposito, Aida Pelaez, Fernandez, Deepa Babington Organizations: MEXICO CITY, greenback, Federal Reserve, Banco Base, JPMorgan, Thomson Locations: MEXICO, America, United States

Bimbo cut its annual sales forecast to low-to-mid single-digit growth, Chief Financial Officer Diego Gaxiola said in a call with analysts, down from a previous projection of mid-to-high single-digit growth. "Compared to our initial sales guidance, we have an impact of more than six percentage points" due to the strength of the peso, Gaxiola said. Earlier on Tuesday the firm, which sells buns, cakes, cookies, bagels and tortillas across 34 countries, reported that revenues increased 4% to a second-quarter record of 100.37 billion pesos ($5.86 billion) following price hikes, which were also offset by the peso's strength. The strong peso also partially contributed to a nearly 30% drop in quarterly net profit, falling to 4.30 billion pesos, Bimbo said. Adjusted earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) for the quarter rose 7.8% to 14.00 billion pesos.

Persons: Bimbo, Diego Gaxiola, Gaxiola, Kylie Madry, Aida Pelaez, Fernandez, Brendan O'Boyle, Sonali Paul Organizations: MEXICO CITY, U.S, Thomson Locations: Canada, MEXICO, U.S, Mexico

Khadija Rmichi’s path to the Women’s World Cup started on a bicycle. Rmichi, a goalkeeper, grew up in Khouribga, a mining city in central Morocco. She was frequently drawn instead to the soccer played by boys in the streets. “It was considered shameful to play with boys,” Rmichi, now 33, said in an interview in April. He told Rmichi that if she could find enough girls to form a team, he would train them.

Persons: ” Rmichi, “, Rmichi Locations: Khouribga, Morocco

☆ Life at Sea's three-year cruise will get a bigger ship
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-05 | by ( Julia Buckley | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +12 min

Life at Sea Cruises is now owned and operated entirely by Miray Cruises, a company with a 30-year history of operating in the Aegean. Bigger ship, fewer guestsStaterooms on the new ship will have 20 square feet more per cabin, say Miray Cruises. Life at Sea CruisesMeanwhile, Miray says it is launching its first Life at Sea cruise in its new ship as planned in November. MV Lara will be larger than the Gemini, Kendra Holmes, CEO of Miray Cruises, told CNN. And this Miray team is accommodating to everyone – If there are concerns, they fix it, if there are ideas they put them into place.

Persons: Miray, “, Mikael Petterson, Irina Strembitsky, Petterson, Staterooms, Lara, Kendra Holmes, Holmes, ” Holmes, Cruises, Heidi Klum, AIDA Cruises, Sharon Lane, ”, ’ ”, Meredith Shay, Shay, Ingrid Warwick, “ It’ll, “ That’s, Finnbarr Webster Organizations: CNN, Sea Cruises, Cruises, Miray Cruises, Gemini, Carnival, Sea, Petterson, Vie Locations: Europe, German, “, Florida, Germany, Istanbul

☆ Argentina economic activity slumps 4.2% in April as drought hit farming
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-30 | by ( Hernan Nessi | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

3 for corn and an important wheat supplier, but the most recent harvest was pummeled by one of the country's worst droughts in history. Government data showed that agriculture and fishing had the worst results for the month, with the former the main driver of the overall activity decline. The 'EMAE' activity index is a useful early indicator of likely economic growth. "These two sectors contributed four percentage points to the year-on-year drop in the EMAE," INDEC said. Argentina is battling inflation of over 100% and a weak peso currency, with around four-in-10 people living in poverty.

Persons: INDEC, Hernan Nessi, Carolina Pulice, Aida Pelaez, Fernandez Organizations: International Monetary Fund, Reuters, Thomson Locations: BUENOS AIRES, Argentina

☆ I used AI to double my income in one year. It wasn't hard to do and didn't cost me anything.
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-18 | by ( Kristen Walters | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +11 min

She used AI to help create faceless YouTube videos, affiliate content, and digital products like ebooks. So I thought I'd share some of the ways that I'm currently using AI to make money in 2023. But combined, they add up to a substantial monthly income from both YouTube Adsense and affiliate products. Digital productsI've been creating simple digital products like ebooks, workbooks, audiobooks for over a decade now.Man, I'm getting old. Of course, you don't have to use ConvertKit.I've also sold digital products using Teachable, Etsy, Gumroad, and my own website(s).

Persons: Kristen Walters, I've, it's, Jasper, ConvertKit.I've, people's, snoop, It's Organizations: YouTube, Adsense, Jasper, Management, PAS, Amazon Associates, AIDA, Publishing, KDP Locations: Jasper, Park

☆ Mexican officials find 129 migrants in truck amid heat wave
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-17 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Instituto Nacional de... Read moreMEXICO CITY, June 17 (Reuters) - Mexican authorities found 129 migrants, mostly from Guatemala, crowded into a truck trailer in the eastern state of Veracruz, the National Migration Institute (INM) said in a statement on Saturday. The migrants were crammed into a trailer in the midst of a heat wave in Mexico, where higher-than-normal temperatures have topped 45C (113F) in several states, including Veracruz, where the operation took place. Immigration agents in late May had uncovered another 175 migrants further south, mainly from Central America, in Chiapas state. Migrants fleeing violence and poverty in Latin America frequently pay smugglers in an attempt to pass through Mexico bound for the U.S. Among the travelers found on Friday were adults from Guatemala, Honduras, India and El Salvador, and 19 unaccompanied minors, the migration institute said.

Persons: Francisco Garduño, Lucinda Elliott, Aida Pelaez, Fernandez, Franklin Paul Organizations: Mexico's National Institute of Migration, INM, Instituto Nacional de, Read, MEXICO CITY, National Migration Institute, U.S, Franklin Paul Our, Thomson Locations: Guatemala, Honduras, El Salvador, India, MEXICO, Veracruz, Mexico, Central America, Chiapas, America

☆ Argentina annual inflation hits 114% but monthly rate slows unexpectedly
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-14 | by ( Jorge Otaola | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

BUENOS AIRES, June 14 (Reuters) - Argentina's annual inflation rate topped 114% in May, but in a silver lining for the embattled South American country the monthly rise came in well below analyst forecasts and posted a surprise slowdown versus a peak the month before. Reuters Graphics Reuters GraphicsAnnual inflation, at its highest level since 1991, was also below a Reuters analyst poll of a 116.1% increase. It remains one of the fastest inflation rates in the world and is far above neighboring countries. Argentina has long battled high inflation, currency weakness and indebtedness, but high global prices linked to the war in Ukraine and a historic drought have hindered the government's ability to rein in prices and stabilize the economy. A central bank source told Reuters on Wednesday that a slower-than-expected inflation reading should mean the entity can avoid a new rate hike at its weekly meeting on Thursday.

Persons: Jorge Otaola, Carolina Pulice, Aida Pelaez, Fernandez, Lisa Shumaker Organizations: Reuters Graphics, Reuters Graphics Reuters, Reuters, Thomson Locations: BUENOS AIRES, Argentina, Ukraine, Brazil, Mexico, Chile

☆ Is It the End of an Era at the Metropolitan Opera?
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-08 | by ( Zachary Woolfe | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

The Metropolitan Opera’s 2022-23 season may well have been the end of an era. As a repertory house and the country’s largest performing arts organization, it juggles multiple works at a time. The days of being America’s grand repertory company, of 20-plus titles a year, could be slowly entering the rearview mirror. So it was fitting that, last month, the Met said farewell to one of the shows that typified the era that’s ending: its “Aida” from the 1980s. The production was typical Met: hardly cheap but sturdy and flexible, into which you could toss singers with relatively little rehearsal.

Persons: it’s, Don Carlo, ” Organizations: Met

☆ Period Fiction: 2 Middle Grade Books About Menstruation and the Politics Beyond It
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-02 | by ( Anna Holmes | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +3 min

The first, CALLING THE MOON: 16 Period Stories From BIPOC Authors (Candlewick, 368 pp., $22.99, ages 10 and up), is an anthology of short stories and prose poems. The title “Calling the Moon” is a reference to menstruation, which usually happens once a month and which some of the anthology’s characters call a moon or luna. Many of the young characters are quick-thinking, improvising ways to handle an unexpected emergence of blood, including the wadding up of pieces of toilet paper as a method of absorption. But I blanched at her use of the word “menstruators” to encompass people who have periods but don’t identify as female. I have to think that we can come up with something else, maybe simply “people who have periods.”

Persons: Aida Salazar, Yamile Saied Mendez, Salazar, Mendez, There’s Penny, it’s, Eden, ” McCullough Organizations: THE, “, Young, Casa Locations: Casa Esperanza

☆ Palestinian-American authors bring their culture to the heart of children's books
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-21 | by ( Alaa Elassar | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +15 min

Today, Moushabeck, 36, is part of a burgeoning movement of Palestinian-American authors publishing children’s books in English with Palestinians as the main characters. Letting Palestinian children be childrenDespite recent strides in the arts, Palestinian-Americans, along with other Arab-Americans, are still woefully underrepresented in books. Between 2018 to 2022, the Cooperative Children’s Book Center at the University of Wisconsin-Madison’s School of Education found that less than 1% of children’s and young adult books released by US publishers were about Arabs. The books also feature activities related to Palestinian culture, including a recipe for hummus and a tutorial for tatreez, traditional Palestinian embroidery. Bishara, whose own family was expelled from the Galilee in 1948, says it’s important to teach Palestinian children raised in diaspora about every aspect of Palestinian culture and history, including those that cause great pain.

☆ Grace Bumbry, Barrier-Shattering Opera Diva, Is Dead at 86
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-08 | by ( Alex Williams | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: 1 min

Grace Bumbry, a barrier-shattering mezzo-soprano whose vast vocal range and transcendent stage presence made her a towering figure in opera and one of its first, and biggest, Black stars, died on Sunday in Vienna. She was 86. Her death, following a stroke in October, was confirmed in a statement by the Metropolitan Opera in New York, where she was long a mainstay, performing more than 200 times over two decades. Growing up in St. Louis in an era of segregation, Ms. Bumbry came of age at a time when African American singers were a rare sight on the opera stage, despite breakthroughs by luminaries like Leontyne Price and Marian Anderson. But with a fierce drive and an outsize charisma, Ms. Bumbry broke out internationally in 1960, at 23, when she sang Amneris in Verdi’s “Aida” at the Paris Opera.

Jeremy Selwyn/WPA Pool/Getty Images Camilla stands next to Queen Elizabeth II during a Diamond Jubilee pageant on the River Thames in June 2012. Chris Jackson/Getty Images From left, Camilla, Charles, Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip attend the state opening of Parliament in May 2013. From left are Camilla, Charles, Queen Elizabeth II, Prince Louis, Duchess Catherine, Princess Charlotte, Prince George and Prince William. Frank Augstein/WPA Pool/Getty Images In pictures: Britain's Queen Camilla Prev NextShe reportedly met Prince Charles at a polo match in Windsor in 1970 and they became friends. From left are Camilla, Charles, Queen Elizabeth II, Prince Louis, Duchess Catherine, Princess Charlotte, Prince George and Prince William.

☆ Asia's 'best restaurants' list is out — and it's no surprise which country made the list 17 times
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-29 | by ( Goh Chiew Tong | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +10 min

William Drew, director of content for Asia's 50 Best Restaurants, said Japan's strong performance is "no surprise." The top 50 restaurants in AsiaThis year commemorates the 10th anniversary of the "Asia's 50 Best Restaurants" list. Asia's top 50 restaurantsThe list of "Asia's 50 Best Restaurants" for 2023 are: 1. Ten restaurants that ranked among Asia's best 50 restaurants last year fell into the 51-100 ranking this year. Asia's 50 Best Restaurants 2023Labyrinth also rose 29 spots to No.11, winning the "Highest Climber" award.

☆ Mexico makes lots of electric cars, but few Mexicans drive them
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-21 | by ( Aida Pelaez-Fernandez | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

General Motors Co, Ford Motor Co, BMW and Volkswagen's Audi unit also are producing EVs in Mexico, or plan to. "There are still a number of issues that need resolving in Mexico before there's a massive influx of electric cars," said Mario Hernandez, KPMG's lead manufacturing partner in Mexico. Hernandez said drawbacks included a lack of subsidies for buyers, high costs for installing charging devices at homes and a shortage of public charging stations, vital for longer journeys. Mexico has about 1,100 charging stations nationwide, mostly in the capital and other major cities, according to AMIA. Pedro Corral, director of operations for EV charging stations platform Evergo, drives his all-electric i3 BMW around Mexico City.

☆ I took a cruise around the Mediterranean. Here are 5 things that surprised me — from the coffee to the navigation.
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-16 | by ( Christian Mayer | Nathan Rennolds | Business Insider Deutschland | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Insider's Christian Mayer took a trip around the Mediterranean on the AIDAblu cruise ship. I recently booked a spontaneous weeklong cruise with the German cruise line Aida Cruises, a subsidiary of Carnival Corporation and PLC, one of the largest cruise companies in the world. The cruise sailed around Italy and Malta, starting off in Civitavecchia, a town on the west coast of Italy near Rome. A tiny ship approached the outer wall of our huge cruise ship, and, in whipping winds, the pilot climbed an outer ladder onto our ship. The ship served Starbucks coffeeThe price of the cruise included filter coffee with breakfast.

☆ Factbox: Hold or hike? Latin American central banks' wield rates to battle rising prices
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-07 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

As countries begin to diverge in strategies, here are the latest rate decisions from Latin America's top economies:BIGGEST MARKETS* Brazil's central bank decided at a February meeting to keep its Selic benchmark interest rate at 13.75%. The central bank aims to bring inflation down to 3%, plus or minus one percentage. SOUTH AMERICA* Argentina is battling one of the highest inflation rates in the world, with annual price rises nearing 100%. As locals struggle to keep up with daily price increases, the central bank since September has maintained its benchmark rate at 75%. * Peru's central bank maintained its benchmark interest rate at 7.75% in February, unchanged from a 25-bps hike a month earlier.

☆ 5 major cruise liners say Elon Musk's Starlink internet will roll out on their ships this year for guest WiFi
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-03 | by ( Kate Duffy | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: 1 min

Carnival Corporation in January announced it had agreed to install Starlink across its global fleet. Carnival cruise ship. Chiyacat/ShutterstockCarnival said in a statement it began rolling out Starlink on Carnival Cruise Line and AIDA Cruises ships in December last year. The company wants to expand Starlink to its other brands, including Princess Cruises, Holland America Line, P&O Cruises, and Seabourn, it added. The company said Starlink would provide faster and more reliable internet on its ships.

☆ Mexico to maintain its diplomats despite Peru pulling its ambassador
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-25 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/2] Mexico's President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador speaks during a news conference at the Old City Hall (Antiguo Palacio del Ayuntamiento), in Mexico City, Mexico January 20, 2023. REUTERS/Henry Romero/MEXICO CITY, Feb 25 (Reuters) - Mexico's foreign ministry said on Saturday the country will maintain its diplomatic and consular representation in Peru and vowed to keep communication channels open, while regretting Peru's decision to remove its ambassador from Mexico. Peru's newly installed President Dina Boluarte announced on Friday the withdrawal of the country's ambassador in Mexico, Manuel Gerardo Talavera, in response to comments from her Mexican counterpart branding her government as unconstitutional. In addition, the conservatives of Peru, which are a minority, violated the constitution," Lopez Obrador said. In a television address, Boluarte said the statements made on Friday by Lopez Obrador "violate the principle of international law about non-interference in internal affairs."

☆ Mexican airline Volaris hopeful Mexico recovers Category 1 safety rating in next six months
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-22 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

MEXICO CITY, Feb 22 (Reuters) - Mexican low-cost carrier Volaris is "optimistic" the country will recover the coveted Category 1 safety rating, which allows airlines to open new routes to the United States, in the next six months, the airline's chief executive said on Wednesday. Mexico was downgraded in May 2021 by the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration, which argued that the country fell short of regulation airlines in accordance with international safety standards. Since then, the FAA has made a number of visits to Mexico, even establishing an office in the country in December. Mexico has proposed reforming its aviation laws, although the most significant proposals remain stuck in Congress. One such proposal would allow "cabotage," a rare practice allowing foreign carriers to open domestic routes in the country.

☆ Mexico's America Movil projects $8 bln to $8.2 bln investment in 2023
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-15 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

MEXICO CITY, Feb 15 (Reuters) - Mexican telecommunications firm America Movil expects to invest between $8 billion and $8.2 billion in 2023, which includes radio-frequency concessions, fiber-optic network expansions and digitalization, a company executive said Wednesday. The estimate is in line with the company's plan to invest $24 billion over three years, Chief Financial Officer Carlos Garcia said in a call with analysts. The firm, controlled by the family of billionaire Carlos Slim, saw its fourth-quarter profit slide by 90%, it reported Tuesday. America Movil expects to enact price hikes in 2023, though it is still evaluating which countries will see the increases, executives said Wednesday on the call. Reporting by Kylie Madry, Aida Pelaez-Fernandez and Cassandra Garrison Editing by Caitlin WebberOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ At least 8 dead in southern Peru landslide, more missing
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-06 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Feb 6 (Reuters) - A landslide triggered by strong rains in Peru killed at least eight people in the country's southern Arequipa region, national emergency services said on Monday. Officials said another five people are missing after the landslide struck near the town of Secocha, located in Camana province, following last week's heavy rainfall in the area. [1/2] An aerial view shows an area affected by a landslide caused by a heavy rains, in Arequipa, Peru February 6, 2023. REUTERS/Oswaldo Charcas 1 2Peru's national emergency center COEN said search and rescue efforts are ongoing. The deadly landslide follows nearly two months of anti-government protests in the South American country, largely centered in Peru's Andean south, after the Dec. 7 removal of former President Pedro Castillo.

☆ Organization of American States backs Peru's president as protests mount
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-25 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

[1/2] Secretary-General of the Organization of American States (OAS) Luis Almagro heads a session at the OAS 52nd General Assembly, in Lima, Peru October 7, 2022. REUTERS/Angela Ponce/File PhotoJan 25 (Reuters) - The Organization of American States' permanent council expressed its "full support" for Peruvian President Dina Boluarte on Wednesday, following weeks of anti-government protests that have left dozens dead. Attending virtually, Boluarte told the council meeting in Washington that she had asked Peru's Congress to approve early elections "as soon as possible". The Congress is set to hold a second and final vote to ratify early elections, moving them from 2026 to April 2024. However, there is mounting pressure to move the elections forward even earlier, as the death toll from weeks of social unrest ticks up.

☆ Bolivia judge rules opposition governor must remain detained ahead of trial
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-19 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

REUTERS/Manuel ClaureLA PAZ, Jan 19 (Reuters) - A Bolivian judge ruled Thursday that Santa Cruz Governor Luis Camacho, a leader long in opposition to the left-leaning federal government, must remain detained while he awaits trial. Since then, weeks of protests and blockades in Camacho's Santa Cruz region, an agricultural hub, have impacted trade with the rest of the country, putting pressure on political capital La Paz. Camacho's lawyer had appealed his four-month detention ahead of his expected trial, arguing that he was not a flight risk and should be placed under house arrest. But judge Rosmery Lourdes Pabon on Thursday ruled that he should remain imprisoned. Morales' successor, the conservative former Senate Vice President Jeanine Anez, was sentenced to 10 years in prison in June for orchestrating a coup.

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