MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency
Venezuela considering increase in gasoline prices, world's cheapest: 2 cents a liter
Fill her up twice, at 2 cents the liter... President Nicolas Maduro said he was contemplating a three-year period to raise domestic fuel prices; a sensitive issue for Venezuela where a similar move helped spark deadly 1989 riots.
“Without doubt, we have to correct a distortion,” Maduro said of Venezuela's highly-subsidized gasoline that, at less than 2 US cents per liter, is the cheapest in the world.
”(There is) a three-year plan to adjust the prices of hydrocarbons in the domestic market ... We'll do it fairly at the right time, not right now, not in January, not rushing,” Maduro said at an unusual meeting with opposition politicians.
Various government officials have in recent days flagged Maduro's intentions to raise gasoline prices, saying the subsidy costs the country about 12.5 billion dollars a year.
Since the 1989 riots, there has been one other adjustment, in 1997, without incident.
While Venezuela's main business group Fedecamaras has welcomed the plan, opposition leaders have said Maduro should first stop sending subsidized oil to political allies such as Cuba before imposing higher prices on Venezuelans.
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Read all commentsThe U.S. airline American Airlines , the largest international carrier of Venezuela , announced that they have stopped selling tickets from Venezuela in any currency.
Dec 20th, 2013 - 04:04 pm 0“Due to limited inventory available , we are unable to sell or to accommodate the requests of passengers at this time ,” said spokeswoman Martha Pantin in response to inquiries made via email today .
“ It's as if the borders were closed and no one put a travel ban ,” said Susana Garcia , owner of the travel agency Chill Out Travel Tours. In a telephone interview said that Venezuelans are you stuck in the country by government policies .
Companies that sell products in Venezuela and other countries , such as airline tickets, are required by law to be equally available to all customers in the local currency , said by telephone Hermann Escarrá , legal adviser to the government of President Nicolas Maduro .
1 ElaineB
Dec 20th, 2013 - 11:41 pm 0Your post confused me, what about Bolivares?
So have they ceased operations?
I was quoting from an article I read today, I should have made that clear.
Dec 20th, 2013 - 11:59 pm 0Commenting for this story is now closed.
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