STANLEY, Falkland Islands (Reuters) – Few people are tracking the ups and downs of the British companies looking for oil off the disputed Falkland Islands as closely as islanders themselves.

The search for black gold in South Atlantic waters claimed by Argentina has even persuaded some residents to dabble in the stock market as they bet on a windfall that could guarantee their small community’s prosperity for decades to come.

STANLEY, Falkland Islands, March 23 (Reuters) – Competition
was fierce at the Falklands horticultural show this year as
islanders turned flowerbeds over to cabbages and chicken coops
to beat food shortages and high prices that many blame on
Argentina.

Thirty years after Argentina and Britain went to war over
the remote South Atlantic archipelago, many of the 3,000
islanders say Argentine shipping controls are disrupting food
imports and making some fresh goods a luxury in the
British-ruled territory.

STANLEY, Falkland Islands, March 20 (Reuters) – Thirty years
after the Falklands War, patriotism is again running high on the
islands as Argentina tries to pressure Britain to negotiate
their sovereignty.

In the quiet island capital of Stanley, Union Jack flags and
red, white and blue bunting are selling fast, and police are
urging Argentine visitors – most of them veterans of the 1982
war – not to antagonize locals by waving their own national
flag.

BUENOS AIRES, March 2 (Reuters) – Argentina’s surprise
proposal for its flag carrier airline to fly to the disputed
Falkland Islands met with skepticism in the British-ruled
territory on Friday.

President Cristina Fernandez said on Thursday she wanted to
renegotiate a 1999 accord with Britain that allows a weekly
flight by Chilean airline Lan , proposing
instead that state-run Aerolineas Argentinas fly to the remote
islands.

BUENOS AIRES, March 1 (Reuters) – Argentina’s
president said on Thursday she wants her country’s flag carrier
to fly to the disputed Falkland Islands and she will seek to
renegotiate an accord with Britain that allows flights from
Chile.

Diplomatic tensions have surged in recent months
ahead of the 30th anniversary of the brief war the two countries
fought over the remote islands in 1982, fueling speculation
about the future of the Falklands only regular commercial air
link.

BUENOS AIRES, Feb 15 (Reuters) – YPF, Argentina’s
biggest oil company, has been banned from exporting and
importing due to unpaid taxes, a government source said on
Wednesday, a step that could stoke tensions between the company
and the government.

YPF , controlled by Spain’s Repsol, used to
have harmonious ties with President Cristina Fernandez, but it
has been bearing the brunt of recent government pressure for
energy companies to boost output investments.

BUENOS AIRES (Reuters) – Argentine President Cristina Fernandez, who will have cancer surgery next week, called for moderation from unions and big business on Wednesday in her first appearance since her illness was made public.

Fernandez, 58, has a papillary carcinoma, the most common form of thyroid cancer, and there is no sign the disease has spread. Doctors say she has a very high chance of recovery and will not need chemotherapy or radiotherapy. The diagnosis was made public on Tuesday.

BUENOS AIRES (Reuters) – Fear and anger are growing among women with breast implants in Latin America, a key market for the bankrupt French firm that used industrial silicone to make cheap prostheses linked to health risks.

The implants at the centre of the scandal were made by the now defunct Poly Implant Prothese (PIP) and appear to have an unusually high rupture rate, prompting French authorities to urge women to have them removed.

BUENOS AIRES (Reuters) – Fear and anger are growing among women with breast implants in Latin America, a key market for the bankrupt French firm that used industrial silicone to make cheap prostheses linked to health risks.

The implants at the center of the scandal were made by the now defunct Poly Implant Prothese (PIP) and appear to have an unusually high rupture rate, prompting French authorities to urge women to have them removed.

BUENOS AIRES (Reuters) – Police raided the offices of a cable television company owned by Argentina’s Clarin (CLA.BA: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) group on Tuesday, adding fresh fuel to a long-standing feud between the government and the country’s biggest media conglomerate.

Clarin, which owns newspapers, television and radio stations, along with Internet access and cable companies, had an acrimonious falling out with center-left President Cristina Fernandez in 2008, and they have been at odds ever since.