Environmentalists Begin National Water March

Environmentalists and civil society groups in three Peruvian regions began on Wednesday a national water march, aimed mainly at rejecting Newmont Mining’s Minas Conga project.  The marchers plan to converge in Lima by next week.

In Cajamarca region, where Conga is located, about 500 people began the march at the Cortada lake, Ideeleradio reported.

Supporters of the march also participated in Peru’s southern Arequipa region, which has also seen a number of conflicts over plans by mining companies to use Read more…

PromPeru Expects 50 Percent Rise In Brazilian Tourists In 2012

Peru’s tourism promotion agency, PromPeru, expectes to see a 50 percent jump in Brazilian tourists this year, state news agency Andina said.

Brazil, the world’s sixth largest economy, is Latin America’s regional powerhouse and is increasingly becoming a player on the world stage.

While Brazil’s clout increases abroad, it is also seeing a growing middle class that is able to take international holidays, including trips to Peru.

In the first nine months of 2011, 92,000 tourists from Brazil visited Peru, up from Read more…

Peru Sees $50 Billion In Investments Over Next Three Years

Peru is expecting to see investments of $50 billion over the next three years, Economy Minister Luis Miguel Castilla said in Spain last week.

In a statement, Castilla, who was in Spain with President Ollanta Humala on an official visit, said Peru is on a “sustainable path of growth,” and called for Spanish companies to invest in the Andean country.

“Spain is our main partner,” Castilla said. “In direct investment we have stock of Read more…

Humala Meets King of Spain And PM In First Official Visit

President Ollanta Humala  met with Spain’s prime minister Mariano Rajoy on Wednesday and called for Spanish companies to boost investments in Peru, newspaper El Comercio reported.

Humala also had a brief private meeting with King Juan Carlos, who later hosted a dinner at the Palacio Real for the Humalas and the Peruvian delegation, which included Foreign Affairs minister Rafael Roncagiolo.

In his first official visit to Spain, Humala also backed a controversial plan announced by Rajoy, who took office last month, to cut Spain’s budget deficit.

“All investments that Spanish companies do are fundamental to generate Read more…

Haitians Blocked From Entering Brazil Stranded In Peru Town

About 200 Haitians in south-eastern Peru are being held back from crossing over to Brazil where a number of their fellow countrymen have migrated in recent weeks to seek jobs, according to newspaper El Comercio.

International media reported earlier this month that around 5,000 Haitians had entered Brazil since the devastating earthquake hit the Caribbean country in 2010. According to the reports, the Haitians often arrived in Ecuador before going to Peru where they would then enter Brazil.

Authorities in Brazil, Latin America’s biggest economy, had lax immigration Read more…

Report: Environment Minister Held Talks For Job With Gold Miner

Environment Minister Manuel Pulgar-Vidal held talks with gold miner Minera Yanacocha about a job offer in mid-2011, only months before his appointment to the Cabinet, according to a report by IDL-Reporteros.

Pulgar-Vidal took over the ministry in early December, after protests against Yanacocha’s $4.8 billion Minas Conga project led President Ollanta Humala to reshuffle his cabinet. The cabinet change came only five months into Humala’s term, and is seen by many analysts as a sign the President Read more…

CAF Looking To Provide Financing For Southern Pipeline

The Andean Development Corporation, CAF, is interested in providing some of the financing for the Southern Andean Gas Pipeline, which will be operated by Kuntur Transportadora de Gas, owned by Odebrecht of Brazil and Conduit Capital Partners of New York.

CAF’s representative in Peru, Ricardo Campins, said the Ministry of Economy and Finance has asked the regional organization to be the financial advisor of state-owned Petroperu in the project.

Petroperu is seeking a minority stake in the pipeline, which has been declared of national interest by parliament due to its potential development boost for Read more…

Peruvian Malls Look At 12 Percent Increase In Sales In 2012

Sales at Peruvian malls are expected to rise about 12 percent this year to $4.7 billion from $4.2 billion in 2011, according to the head of the Peruvian association of malls (ACCEP), Gonzalo Anzola.

“The projection for growth for malls is really soaring and we calculate that in two or threeyears we should pass from 45 to 80 or 100 malls in Lima and the provinces,” daily Peru.21 reported Anzola saying.

In 2000, there were seven malls in Peru, with six of them located in the capital, Read more…

Peru Defense Minister Plans Trip To Brazil

Peru’s Minister of Defense, Luis Alberto Otarola, is to travel to Brazil in February to promote the entrance  of Peruvian companies producing military equipment into Latin America’s biggest economy, state news agency Andina reported.

Otarola said that Peru’s naval shipyard and industrial services company, Sima, will look to position itself in the Brazilian market during the coming years.

“We hope that starting next year Sima will participate in bids in the Brazilian Read more…

Average Salaries Increase 13.3 Percent In 4Q11

The average salary of workers in Peru’s capital, Lima, increased 13.3 percent in the last quarter of 2011 versus the year-ago period, the National Statistics Institute, INEI, said on Monday.

The average wage was 1,274.8 soles (approximately $473) a month in the fourth quarter of 2011, which represents an increase of 149.5 soles from the fourth quarter of 2010, state news agency Andina reported.

The average salary among men was 1,493.9 soles, while for women it was 991.5 Read more…

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