1. You are here: News Economy Exito shareholders OK plan to buy Uruguayan grocers <br />Skip to content<br />Exito shareholders OK plan to buy Uruguayan grocers <br />Wednesday, 06 July 2011 16:09 Adriaan Alsema <br />Shareholders of Colombia's largest retailer, Almacenes Exito SA, on Wednesday approved a plan by the board of directors to purchase two supermarket chains in Uruguay for $746 million.<br />In a statement, Exito also said its planned share issue for up to $1.4 billion, the proceeds of which would go toward the acquisitions in Uruguay, is moving forward and should be completed around the end of September.<br />Last week, Exito disclosed the plan to buy Uruguayan retailers Disco and Devoto, two of that countries' largest grocers. Both Exito and the two Uruguayan firms they plan to buy are majority-controlled by French retailer Casino Guichard-Perrachon SA, so they deal left some analysts scratching their heads.<br />quot;
Casino [is] purchasing an asset from Casino,quot;
Rupert Stebbings of investment firm Celfin Capital in Medellin said last week.<br />Together, the two retailers in Uruguay have 53 stores and are projected to generate sales of $770 million this year.<br />The latest statement from Exito said Casino wants it to lead the way in Casino's expansion throughout Spanish-speaking Latin America.<br />Exito shares fell 1.2% Wednesday on the Colombian Stock Exchange to close at COP23,700. The company's stock price has fallen 9% since the new share-issue plan was reported last week.<br />News<br />Sports<br />Economy<br />Culture<br />Interviews<br />From The Editor<br />Matthew Helm<br />Julian E. Torres<br />Elyssa Pachico<br />Santiago Sosa<br />Pablo Rojas<br />Michael Sutton<br />Disinformation<br />Bogota<br />Medellin<br />Cali<br />Cartagena<br />Southeast Colombia<br />Bogota<br />Medellin<br />Coffee region<br />Caribbean<br />General<br />Cali<br />Amazon<br />Pacific<br />Lite news<br />Gossip<br />Beauty<br />Food<br /> <br /> <br />You are here: News Economy House panel to take up Colombia trade agreement <br />Skip to content<br />House panel to take up Colombia trade agreement <br />Tuesday, 05 July 2011 12:17 The Associated Press <br />House Republicans are bucking demands from the Obama White House to include renewal of a U.S. job training assistance program in long-pending legislation providing free-trade agreements with Colombia, South Korea and Panama.<br />The standoff could jeopardize passage of the trade pacts, which are to be brought before the Ways and Means Committee later this week.<br />The panel, which oversees trade agreements, has scheduled a Thursday meeting to debate and vote on the drafts of legislation to implement the three new deals signed during the George W. Bush administration but stalled in past congresses controlled by Democrats.<br />The Obama administration now supports the agreements, after negotiated changes in the accords including greater access for U.S. autos in South Korea and commitments by the Colombian government to end the suppression of worker rights. But it has also demanded that the trade package be linked to renewal of expired sections of the Trade Adjustment Assistance program which provides financial and retraining aid to displaced workers.<br />Republicans have supported TAA in the past, but have balked both at the cost of the program, about $1 billion a year, and the linkage with the trade agreements. Last Thursday the Finance Committee in the Democratic-led Senate was to have met to consider the trade deals and TAA together, but the hearing was canceled after Republicans on the committee boycotted.<br />Finance Committee chairman Max Baucus, D-Mont., in a statement Tuesday, said: quot;
right now, our competitors are gaining ground in these vital markets and jobless Americans in need of opportunities are left waiting while these trade agreements languish.quot;
He added, quot;
we need to come together to move these three trade agreements and Trade Adjustment Assistance forward as soon as possible because American workers and small businesses simply cannot afford to wait any longer.quot;
<br />GOP allies in the business committee, such as the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, have urged Congress to move quickly on the three trade agreements, saying they could boost U.S. exports by $13 billion and create tens of thousands of jobs. The Chamber said it supported TAA and said it appreciated bipartisan efforts to reach a reasonable compromise on TAA legislation.<br />Ways and Means aides said the House could still consider a TAA bill separately, but they were waiting for guidance from the GOP leadership.<br />Colombia claims record growth in foreign investment <br />Monday, 04 July 2011 08:40 Marguerite Cawley <br />Foreign investment into the Colombian economy in the first trimester of 2011 was the highest in the country's history, reported Trade Minister Sergio Diaz-Granados.<br />Investment grew 132.5% from January to April of 2011 compared with the same period in 2010, hitting a total of $3.698 billion. According to Diaz-Granados, this figure equals 55% of the total investment that occurred over the course of 2010, and is the highest first trimester investment figure in Colombia's history.<br />According to central bank figures, foreign direct investment in the oil sector grew by 122.9%, while the overall level of investment in the mining and oil sector relatively decreased, dropping from 74.9% of total investments in 2010 to 57% for the same period in 2011.<br />Meanwhile, participation in other sectors rose from 25.1% to 43%. The sectors that saw the most growth were transportation, storage and communications, with a 2,040.7% annual growth, and commerce, restaurants and hotels, with a 1,090.3% annual growth.<br />The minister said that it is possible that foreign investment could reach $9.7 billion by the end of the year, reported Caracol Radio.<br />