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☆ The one crucial industry where China is crushing America in the Tech Cold War
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-16 | by ( Linette Lopez | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +14 min

As of now, CATL has 13 factories worldwide that supply batteries for Tesla, Toyota, and Daimler. And thanks to its ownership of its battery supply chain, it's able to make cars cheaply. Stevenson-Yang sees parts of China's battery supply chain as the next glut it will need to dump. But the potential of a battery supply glut tomorrow doesn't help carmakers meet their needs today. "But if we're looking at evolutionary improvements, China Battery Inc. will still dominate.

☆ I'm a digital nomad who's visited 59 countries. The biggest misconception people have about my life is that I don't work.
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-13 | by ( Alcynna Lloyd | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

Daisy Dyke has visited 59 countries around the world, including Greece, New Zealand and Brazil. Growing up, I was obsessed with nature documentaries, and from a young age knew that I wanted to travel and explore. After about eight months of traveling, I went back to England and attended the University of Liverpool. I knew I wanted to travel for a couple of years and would need to work while doing that. People have a misconception that digital nomads don't workAs of 2023, I've visited 59 countries.

☆ Bolivian leader open to using yuan for trade, touting 'trend'
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-11 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

LA PAZ, May 10 (Reuters) - Bolivia's president expressed openness to the use of the Chinese yuan for international trade during a press conference on Wednesday, citing similar moves by Argentina and Brazil to tap the Asian currency for transactions with China. International trade transactions tend to be priced in U.S. dollars, especially for major commodity markets like energy and grains, going back decades. Earlier in the year, China and Brazil moved to reduce the dominance of the greenback by signing a deal to set up yuan clearing arrangements that can facilitate bilateral trade. "In Latin America, we have always had a great influence from the United States... but today many countries have more foreign trade with China. Reporting by Daniel Ramos; Writing by Valentine Hilaire; Editing by David Alire GarciaOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Weird and wonderful trains that break the rules
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-08 | by ( Ben Jones | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +14 min

Here’s a selection of unusual railways that break the rules in order to reach the places other trains can’t roll. The single rails carrying the trains are supported by a series of 486 steel portals weighing almost 20,000 tonnes in total. It is the oldest continuously operating pier railway in the world. Six miles of the route are along a rural railway line, with the rest in bus mode. Katoomba Scenic Railway, AustraliaNot far from the wonderful city of Sydney is a railway experience unlike anything else in the world.

☆ What Chile's state-led lithium policy means for the future of the electric vehicle industry
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-06 | by ( Katie Brigham | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +9 min

The only two lithium companies currently operating in Chile are North Carolina-based Albemarle , the largest lithium producer in the world, and SQM , the No. Chile's lithium is of particular strategic importance to the U.S., which has a free trade agreement with the country but not with neighboring Argentina. The plan calls for the creation of a national lithium company to partner with all private businesses looking to enter the sector. Bags of battery-grade lithium carbonate at La Negra, Albemarle's lithium processing plant near Antofagasta, Chile. Lenny-Pessagno told CNBC in January that Albemarle supports the creation of a state-owned lithium company.

☆ Bolivia takes control of Banco Fassil, executives arrested
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-27 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

LA PAZ, April 26 (Reuters) - Bolivia's government took control of one of the country's largest banks, Banco Fassil, a senior government financial official said on Wednesday, and police arrested several executives for alleged mismanagement. "Mismanagement, unhealthy practices have caused a crisis," the executive director of Bolivia's Financial System Supervision Authority (ASFI), Reynaldo Yujra, told reporters in the city of Santa Cruz. Dozens of police were stationed at Banco Fassil's 185 branches across Bolivia on Wednesday, authorities said. Banco Fassil President Ricardo Mertens, General Manager Jorge Arturo Chávez and another executive, Hernan Suarez, were arrested late Tuesday, while a fourth, Hermes Saucedo, turned himself in early Wednesday morning, according to the Santa Cruz attorney general's office. "The financial system in general is in good health.

☆ Chile's lithium push emerges as test for Latin American resource nationalism
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-27 | by ( David Alire Garcia | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +6 min

[1/2] Laborers work at a lithium plant on the Atacama salt flat in the Atacama desert of northern Chile January 8, 2013. While the former student protest leader's proposal to give the government a majority stake in all future lithium projects faces an uncertain path in Congress, its mere introduction shook one of the mining industry's most lucrative corners. Lithium is in high demand for rechargeable batteries for future fleets of electric vehicles in the global transition to green energy. That leaves the exception to the trend, Argentina, as an increasingly likely Latin American destination for new private capital for lithium. A strong pipeline of lithium projects in Argentina, the world's No.

Listed miners with lithium projects in South America suffered, however, on concerns other governments may follow Chile's lead. Elsewhere in Asia, lithium prices stabilised on an improved demand outlook, and Japan acted to shore up its EV minerals supply by announcing a swathe of industry subsidies. Bucking the regional trend were Australian-listed miners with projects in South America's lithium triangle which spans Chile, Argentina and Bolivia, on concerns other governments may follow Chile's footsteps. Shares in miners with Argentine projects fell. Lithium Power International, (LPI.AX) whose Maricunga brine project is Chile's largest permitted, proposed project welcomed the new policy which it said would "positively transform" Chile's lithium industry.

Many DLE technologies use lots of potable water and electricity. SQM (SQMA.SN) and Albemarle Corp (ALB.N), Chile's two existing lithium producers, use evaporation ponds to produce the metal. Livent Corp (LTHM.N) uses a variation of DLE technology in Argentina alongside evaporation ponds. Lake Resources is working with Bill Gates-backed Lilac Solutions Inc to deploy Lilac's DLE technology in Argentina. In Chile, DLE companies see a business opportunity despite the nationalization plans given that Boric's new state lithium company is expected to need technical support.

☆ Argentina's lithium pipeline promises 'white gold' boom as Chile tightens control
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-24 | by ( Lucila Sigal | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

Neighboring Chile, the region's top lithium producer, last week unveiled plans for a state-led public-private model, spooking investors. Bolivia has long maintained strict control over its huge though largely untapped resources, while Mexico nationalized its lithium deposits last year. The country has six lithium projects under construction and 15 in the advanced exploration or feasibility stage, Mignacco said. "Argentina's lithium sector has thrived through a decentralized, pro-market strategy," said Benjamin Gedan, director of the Latin America program at The Wilson Center, adding in contrast Bolivia's lithium sector had "repeatedly stalled as a result of excessive state control." "Chile today produces and exports much more lithium than Argentina," said Natacha Izquierdo, analyst at consultancy ABCEB.

☆ Chile’s plan for state control in lithium dismays business
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-22 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +6 min

A lithium mining machine moves a salt by-product at the mine in the Atacama Desert in Salar de Atacama, Chile on October 25, 2022. Under the plan, all companies wanting to work in Chile's lithium sector will have to take on the yet-to-be created National Lithium Company as a partner and the "state will have control," Boric said Thursday. But Chile's business sector expressed concern. Mewes said business leaders had expected there would be a "great private sector participation" in the lithium sector and now the "state will be the one that will control" the industry. She worries about what message this sends to others in the region that are trying to build up nascent industries, considering Mexico already nationalized its lithium sector.

SQM's lithium contract in Chile is set to expire in 2030 and Albemarle's in 2043, giving it more insulation from the potential move. Mexico nationalized its lithium deposits last year, and Indonesia banned exports of nickel ore, a key battery material, in 2020. SQM has a larger footprint in Chile, with 81,000 hectares (about 200,000 acres) for lithium extraction compared with Albemarle's 16,000 hectares. Argentine state energy firm YPF last year began exploring lithium, while Bolivia has long maintained strict control over its huge though largely untapped resources. Mexico's President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador and Bolivia's Luis Arce have touted the idea of a regional lithium "OPEC" to coordinate on lithium policy and benefit local economies.

The move would see Chile, the world's second largest lithium producer, shift to a model with the state holding a controlling interest in all new lithium projects through a public company that would partner with private mining firms. Mexico nationalized its lithium deposits last year, and Indonesia banned exports of nickel ore, a key battery material, in 2020. In early trading on Friday, Chilean firm SQM's U.S.-listed shares slid 6.2%, while Albemarle was down 2.5%. SQM's lithium contract in Chile is set to expire in 2030 and Albemarle's in 2043, giving it more insulation from the potential move. Mining shares in London fell sharply too.

☆ Andes Turmoil Rattles Governments, Spurs Migration to U.S.
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-20 | by ( Ryan Dube | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

LIMA, Peru—Mounting violent crime and political upheaval are buffeting Andean countries in South America that had recently been stable, threatening fragile governments and prompting hundreds of thousands to flee north to the U.S. In Ecuador, President Guillermo Lasso faces an impeachment vote in May as drug-related homicides have risen. Bolivia has run out of dollars, its government hobbled by tumbling natural-gas exports. Peru’s economy has contracted sharply since President Pedro Castillo was removed from office in December, sparking violent protests. Colombian drug gangs run rampant in some rural regions, even as the former guerrilla who leads the government, Gustavo Petro , embarks on peace negotiations with them.

☆ Interpol-led LatAm swoop seizes thousands of weapons, $5.7 bln in drugs
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-18 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

MEXICO CITY, April 18 (Reuters) - Interpol said on Tuesday its largest-ever fire arms swoop across Central and South America resulted in the seizure of thousands of illegal weapons and $5.7 billion worth of drugs after unprecedented cooperation by 15 countries. The operation found 8,263 illicit firearms and nearly 306,000 rounds of ammunition, as well as 203 tonnes of drugs and 372 tonnes of drug precursors. Eleven people were rescued in Paraguay when authorities dismantled a human trafficking ring, Interpol said. It said law enforcement had reported a spike in drug-related violence over the past year, fueled by trafficking of illegal firearms. The swoop saw participation from Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico, Panama, Paraguay, Peru and Uruguay.

☆ Peruvian archaeologists unearth 500-year-old Inca ceremonial bath
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-14 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/3] Archaeologists work in the remains of an ancient ceremonial Inca bathroom, discovered in a sector known as Inkawasi (House of the Inca), at the archaeological site Huanuco Pampa, in Huanuco, Peru April 5, 2023. Found near the "House of the Inca" in the Huanuco Pampa archaeological zone in central Peru, local archaeologists believe that the bath may have served a religious purpose for high-ranking members of the Inca empire, which 500 years ago extended from southern Ecuador to the center of Chile. The Huanuco Pampa archaeological site is part of the Qhapaq Nan project, a complex 25,000-kilometer-long road network that linked Ecuador, Colombia, Peru, Bolivia and Argentina. The road system was declared a World Heritage Site in 2014. Reporting by Marco Aquino; Writing by Sarah Morland; Editing by Aurora EllisOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

[1/2] The new GM logo is seen on the facade of the General Motors headquarters in Detroit, Michigan, U.S., March 16, 2021. Many teem with lithium, calcium and other minerals, and DLE technologies aim to separate out the lithium and leave the rest. LITHIUM METAL FROM BRINEEnergyX has said its technology can make lithium metal directly from brine, a tantalizing prospect for GM that could let the automaker bypass lithium refining, which is widely seen as a key supply chain bottleneck. The EnergyX investment comes after GM in January agreed to pay $650 million to become the largest shareholder in Lithium Americas Corp (LAC.TO), which is developing the Thacker Pass clay lithium project in Nevada. "This GM investment will completely change the trajectory of EnergyX," said Teague Egan, the startup company's founder and chief executive.

☆ General Motors will lead a $50 million funding round for lithium extraction startup EnergyX
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-11 | by ( John Rosevear | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

EnergyX demonstrated its technology with a pilot plant in South America's "Lithium Triangle," an area of salt flats covering parts of Argentina, Bolivia and Chile that contains over half of the world's known lithium reserves. General Motors said Tuesday its venture capital arm will lead a $50 million financing round for EnergyX, a Texas-based startup developing a more efficient method to extract and process lithium from salt flats. The process is relatively cheap, but it only recovers 30% to 40% of the total lithium – while using huge amounts of water and land. EnergyX plans to use the new funding to build five larger demonstration plants in North and South America. For GM, a key priority is to unlock a North American supply of lithium, which isn't cost-competitive with global supplies using current extraction methods.

☆ Latam, Caribbean leaders meet to draft roadmap to tame inflation
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-05 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

MEXICO CITY, April 5 (Reuters) - Leaders of 11 Latin American and Caribbean countries agreed to work to outline measures seeking to tame inflation in the region, including better conditions for trade, according to a statement published by Mexico's presidential office Wednesday. Agreements reached include the creation of a working group of government representatives aimed at identifying regional measures to coordinate the trade of commodities, fertilizers and other goods. The group's action plan is set to be implemented "within a reasonable time frame," the statement added. The new anti-inflation alliance also agreed to invite more countries from the region to take part, the statement said. Reporting by Valentine Hilaire and Raul Cortes Fernandez; Editing by Brendan O'BoyleOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

[1/5] One of the dishes created by Bolivian chef Marsia Taha and Peruvian chef Virgilio Martinez with ingredients from the Amazon, gets served at Gustu restaurant, in La Paz, Bolivia, March 31, 2023. REUTERS/Claudia MoralesApril 3 (Reuters) - In the high altitudes of Bolivia's La Paz, some of South America's top chefs are paying homage to regional Amazonian culinary ingredients including gusanillo, or worm chili, tree bark that tastes like garlic, and honey from stingless bees. At Taha's restaurant Gustu in La Paz, a feast of colors and flavors was carefully spread out on wooden tables decorated with large leaves to celebrate the gastronomic diversity of the Peruvian and Bolivian Amazon. "This is not only a celebration of the Amazon and its biodiversity but of our producers as well. They are the ones who make it possible for these products to arrive to our homes or our restaurants," said Taha.

☆ Wall Street analysts love these emerging market stocks that all trade in the U.S.
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-30 | by ( Sarah Min | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

While U.S. and European investors continue to navigate a banking crisis, high inflation and slower earnings growth, a host of emerging markets stocks beloved by Wall Street analysts are expected to surge higher. Emerging markets equities had an optimistic start to the year as China reopened its economy, and as high inflation showed signs of easing. In 2023, the iShares MSCI Emerging Markets ETF (EEM) is up 4.4% through Thursday's open. In fact, some emerging markets stocks that are also listed in the U.S. could be due for huge upside. These names are included in exchange traded funds such as the the iShares MSCI Emerging Markets ETF, Vanguard FTSE Emerging Markets ETF, iShares Core MSCI Emerging Markets ETF, the Schwab Emerging Markets Equity ETF or the SPDR Portfolio Emerging Markets ETF.

☆ Venezuela's Maduro to join Ibero-American summit in rare foreign trip
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-25 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

SANTO DOMINGO, March 24 (Reuters) - Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro will attend an Ibero-American summit this weekend hosted by the Dominican Republic, a summit official said on Friday, marking one of the embattled leader's few trips abroad. "We welcome President Nicolas Maduro, who is on his way to the Dominican Republic," said Marian Cruz, the master of ceremonies for the event, which provides a forum for leaders from across Latin America as well as Spain and Portugal. Maduro's attendance at the Saturday and Sunday summit in Santo Domingo would be his first foreign trip this year. Maduro is shunned by many governments due in large part to his 2018 re-election derided as a sham by international observers. Cruz, the summit official, also confirmed the attendance of Spain's President Pedro Sanchez.

The stand-off could threaten the government's revived push to advance lithium projects and make batteries, including through a recent deal with a Chinese consortium led by the world's largest battery maker CATL. Local authorities pledged to try to ease the tensions. "We are going to redouble our efforts as authorities ... so that this mobilization is lifted," said Jhonny Mamani, Potosi governor. Officials blamed the protests on misinformation campaigns and urged Bolivians to allow projects to move ahead or risk losing the chance to develop lithium resources. Reporting by Daniel Ramos and Monica Machicao; Writing by Anna-Catherine Brigida; Editing by David GregorioOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Orchestra turns trash to music and environmental activism in Bolivia
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-28 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/5] Women waste pickers from the city of La Paz pose near the musicians of the Paraguayan Cateura Recycled Instruments Orchestra, at the Sak'a Churu landfill in Alpacoma, in La Paz, Bolivia February 27, 2023. But the garbage was the point, as the young musicians who make up Paraguay's Cateura orchestra use recycled materials to make their own instruments, "transforming trash into music," according to Fabio Chavez, one of the performers. "It's very beautiful and I was really surprised with these recycled instruments," said worker Silveria Vega. The concert played out as local officials in La Paz aim to minimize the environmental impact of garbage dumps, especially the risk they can pose to ground water supplies. Bolivia's capital produces some 670 tonnes of trash every day, according to official data.

After Russia invaded Ukraine, the West formed what looked like an overwhelming global coalition: 141 countries supported a United Nations measure demanding that Russia unconditionally withdraw. South Korea Indonesia Israel Thailand Japan Saudi Arabia Philippines Afghanistan CambodiaBy contrast, Russia seemed isolated. Eritrea “Russian actions are being distorted” North Korea Russia Belarus Syria Eritrea “Russian actions are being distorted” North Korea Russia Belarus SyriaBut the West never won over as much of the world as it initially seemed. But like many other African countries, South Africa appears careful to balance its growing ties with Russia against maintaining a relationship with the West. Others that provided Ukraine with military support have declined to impose economic sanctions on Russia.

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