Briefly

ARGENTINA

$65b debt deal struck to avert hard default

Argentina has reached an agreement with creditors to restructure around $65 billion in sovereign debt, breaking a deadlock in talks that will help the country climb out of default and banish fears of a damaging and protracted legal standoff. The economy ministry said in a statement on Tuesday that it had reached an accord with major creditors after agreeing to adjust some payment dates and legal clauses to sweeten what had been touted as its "final" proposal made in early July. A major grain producer and once one of the world's wealthiest countries, Argentina fell into its ninth sovereign default in May and is headed for an estimated 12 percent economic contraction this year on the back of two years of recession. Argentina struck a $57 billion loan deal with the International Monetary Fund in 2018 and has said it will seek a new program with the fund after it wraps up its talks with private creditors.

UNITED STATES

4 dead after storm pounds East Coast

Tropical storm Isaias left at least four people dead as it pounded the US Eastern Seaboard with driving winds and heavy rain, cutting off power to millions of households on Wednesday. A tornado ripped through a mobile home park in North Carolina, killing two people, said state governor Roy Cooper on Tuesday, while two more died when trees fell on their cars－one in New York and the other in Maryland. The tropical storm was downgraded late on Tuesday as it streaked into southeastern Canada, where forecasters warned of heavy rain.

THE DOMINICAN REPUBLIC

Reports of Spanish ex-king's arrival denied

Spain's scandal-hit former king Juan Carlos, who announced he was leaving the country, has not entered the Dominican Republic thus far, contrary to reports he had traveled there, an official said on Tuesday. Several Spanish media outlets had reported that the 82-year-old had gone to the Caribbean country, where he planned to stay with friends. But a spokeswoman for the Dominican immigration service, Mariela Caamano, said Juan Carlos had not "entered the country's territory, contrary to certain statements indicating he has arrived early on Tuesday". La Vanguardia newspaper reported on Wednesday that Juan Carlos told friends from aboard a jet carrying him away from Spain that his sudden exit is only temporary.

Agencies - Xinhua