Ouch! Another Gasoline Price Increase Approved
It's official. Costa Rican will need to hand over an average of 11.28% or ¢36.50 colonesfor a litre of gasoline with the approval by the Autoridad Reguladora de los Servicios Públicos (Aresep), the authority on public prices and services.

Oil Bill Increased by $197.1 Million
Over the 12 months that ended in March, Costa Rica paid us$735.8 million, us$197.1 million more than in the same period ending March last year, for oil products.

Italian Fugitive Caught
An joint investigation by the International Police (Interpol), the Costa Rican DIS and the Organismo de Investigación Judicial (OIJ) de Cóbano, Puntarenas put an end to freedom of Italian fugitive, Elio Migliorini.

No Electrical Service in Downtown San José Tomorrow and Next Sunday
The Compañía Nacional de Fuerza y Luz (CNFL) announced yesterday that it will be suspending electrical service to a large part of downtown San José tomorrow (Sunday) between the hours of 7am and 3pm.

Finland to Reform Foreign Aid
The Finnish Ambassador to Central America, Inger Hirvela, said that her country is modifying the procedures to control its foreign aid, after admitting that the sale of medical equipment to Costa Rica is the first case of corruption, in 40 years linked to cooperation funds.

Exports at a Slow Pace
The exports of Costa Rica increased only by 1 percent this year's first quarter, when they reached us$1,609 million, as compared to the us$1,592 recorded in the same period in 2004.


LATIN AMERICA

Ecuador changes military, police leaders
Newly-installed Ecuadorian President Alfredo Palacio sacked leaders of the armed forces and the police on Friday, just two days after he was sworn in.

Venezuela rules out suspending oil supply to US
Venezuela, the world's fifth largest crude exporter, has no plans for a suspension of oil supply to the United States, Vice President Jose Rangel said here Friday.

IDB proposes reforms to prevent crisis in Iberian-American countries
Poverty and social exclusion in the Iberian-American countries have to be addressed through structural reforms to prevent a crisis such as the one in Ecuador, the head of the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) said on Friday.

US donates 10 aircraft to Colombia
The United States has donated to Colombia four airplanes and six helicopters to support the South American country's efforts to fight drug trafficking and terrorism, the Colombian Defense Ministry said Friday.

Minimum Wage Hike Hot News in Cuba
Over 1 650 00 Cubans have gone to work on Friday encouraged by the new minimum wage increase measure announced Thursday by Cuban leader Fidel Castro.


SPECIAL REPORTS

ENVIRONMENT-CHILE:
A Mega-Trail for Ecotourism
Twelve environmental projects will promote ecotourism along the ''Sendero de Chile'', the Chilean Trail, which at 8,000 kilometres will be one of the longest pathways in the world for hiking or tours on bicycle or horseback.