Venezuelan parliament approves new oil taxes
Venezuela's National Assembly on Tuesday approved a new 33.3 percent tax on oil extraction that will mainly affect joint ventures involved in extracting heavy crude from the country's oil-rich Orinoco River basin.

Deaths toll in Brazil's gang related violence rises to 133
Deaths bring the toll since Friday to 133, including 40 officers and guards, in Brazil's latest gang related riots that has sown fear in Sao Paulo, South America's largest metropolis.

Ecuador defends cancelling contract with US firm
Ecuador's government on Tuesday defended its decision to revoke a contract with the U.S. oil company Occidental Petroleum, saying the cancellation would bring order to its oil industry.

Venezuela may sell US F-16s to Iran
The Venezuelan military was considering to sell F-16 fighter planes bought from the United States to another country, possibly Iran, in response to a U.S. ban on arms sales to Venezuela, a senior military official said on Tuesday.

Castro says he's not wealthy, Forbes story untrue
Cuban President Fidel Castro furiously denied on Monday a story in Forbes magazine that he was worth $900 million and said he would step down if the magazine could prove the assertion.