Turkey’s EU prospects were bolstered by the news that Turkish and Greek Cypriots agreed to resume peace talks. Leaders of the two factions, Tassos Papadopoulos and Mehmet Ali Talat, said they will restart a process which was stalled after a unfavourable 2004 referendum vote. The Cyprus issue has been a major stumbling block in Turkey’s efforts to join the EU, narrowly avoiding derailing recent discussions.
Polish prime minister Kazimierz Marcinkiewicz resigned, shocking markets, and putting pressure on the zloty. He will likely be replaced by Jaroslaw Kaczynski, twin brother of president Lech Kaczynski. The former has said he would replace newly appointed finance minister Pawel Wojciechowski with former agricultural bank economist Stanislaw Kluza.
Andres Lopes Obrador said the election won by rival Felipe Calderon was fraudulent and promised a legal challenge. He called for more popular rallies to back his cause.
Singapore’s GDP grew at an annualised quarterly rate of 1.1%, slowing from 7% in the first three months of the year.
Philippines central bank deputy governor Diwa Gunigundo predicted inflation will this year fall faster than expected. The target range of 7.3-7.9% will probably be revised down, he said.
Moody’s upgraded Chile’s foreign currency debt to A2 from Baa1 as high copper prices boosted reserves.
Armando Rodas, Ecuador’s finance minister elect, has pledged not to increase expenditure and suggested he may try to put aside oil revenue in special trusts designed to finance future investment.