June 19, 2010 9:38 pm
CNBC (Reuters), “Hugo Chavez Spearheads Raids as Food Prices Skyrocket”
Mountains of rotting food found at a government warehouse, soaring prices and soldiers raiding wholesalers accused of hoarding: Food supply is the latest battle in President Hugo Chavez’s socialist revolution.
Venezuelan army soldiers swept through the working class, pro-Chavez neighborhood of Catia in Caracas last week, seizing 120 tons of rice along with coffee and powdered milk that officials said was to be sold above regulated prices.
“The battle for food is a matter of national security,” said a red-shirted official from the Food Ministry, resting his arm on a pallet laden with bags of coffee.
It is also the latest issue to divide the Latin American country where Chavez has nationalized a wide swathe of the economy, he says to reverse years of exploitation of the poor.
CNBC (Reuters) article continues here.
May 17, 2010 10:38 am
BusinessWeek, “Venezuela’s Chavez orders takeover of iron-makers”
President Hugo Chavez announced Saturday the expropriation of a group of iron, aluminum and transportation companies in Venezuela’s mining region.
Among the expropriated companies is Materiales Siderurgicos, or Matesi, which is the Venezuelan subsidiary of Luxembourg-based steel maker Tenaris SA.
Venezuela’s socialist president said in a televised that his government was going to take over Matesi because “we couldn’t reach an amicable and reasonable settlement with the owners.
BusinessWeek article continues here.
May 8, 2010 10:08 pm
My Way News (AP), “Venezuela annual inflation rate hits 30 percent”
Venezuela’s annual inflation rate has surpassed 30 percent after consumer prices surged in April.
The Central Bank and National Statistics Institute on Friday reported a 5.2 percent increase in consumer prices during April, driving up the annual rate to 30.4 percent.
President Hugo Chavez’s government has been struggling against the highest inflation rate in Latin America and a weakening economy in general.
My Way News (AP) article continues here.
April 5, 2010 10:48 pm
Yahoo! News (AP), “Putin: Russian arms to Venezuela may be $5B”
Arms exports to Venezuela may reach as much as $5 billion, Prime Minister Vladimir Putin said Monday, a few days after he traveled to the country.
Putin visited Venezuela late last week to meet with President Hugo Chavez and pledged to sell more weapons to the country but gave no concrete figures.
“Our delegation has just returned from Venezuela, and the total volume of orders may exceed $5 billion,” Putin said in televised remarks.
Yahoo! News (AP) article continues here.
April 2, 2010 6:32 pm
Reuters, “Putin bolsters oil, defense ties with Venezuela”
by Darya Korsunskaya and Anthony Boadle
Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin visited Venezuela on Friday to discuss oil, defense and nuclear energy cooperation with Latin America’s main leftist foe of the United States, President Hugo Chavez.
They were to launch a $20 billion venture between Russian firms and Venezuelan state company PDVSA to pump 450,000 barrels a day — almost a fifth of the OPEC member’s current output — from the vast Orinoco heavy oil belt.
Putin’s 12-hour visit provides a welcome lift for Chavez, who is facing domestic and international criticism for failing to solve Venezuela’s economic woes and attempting to silence opposition to his 11-year rule.
Reuters article continues here.
March 26, 2010 2:03 pm
Cato @ Liberty, “Chavez Arrests the President of Globovision Television”
by Ian Vasquez
Today, the Venezuelan government arrested Guillermo Zuloaga, president of Globovision Television, the only remaining television on public airwaves critical of Hugo Chavez. According to the government, Zuloaga made offensive comments about Chavez (which is against the law in Venezuela) while speaking at a conference of the Inter-American Press Association (IAPA) in Aruba, where media representatives criticized the Venezuelan regime’s crackdown on freedom of speech.
Globovision and Zuloaga have been under constant harassment from the government, and Chavez has promised to close the station.
Cato @ Liberty article continues here.
March 15, 2010 1:57 pm
BBC News, “Light bulbs power Venezuela out of electricity crisis”
by Will Grant
On the Fuerte Tiuana military base in Caracas, there is a warehouse full of light bulbs. Hundreds of boxes of Firefly energy-efficient bulbs are sitting in vast stacks, ready to be loaded onto waiting trucks by the troops.
Meanwhile, the other half of the warehouse is a graveyard for used and spent light bulbs.
Huge amounts of filaments and broken glass have been swept into small mountains before being shipped to Venezuela’s second city, Maracaibo, for safe disposal because of the mercury content.
Outside the warehouse, a platoon of soldiers is standing to attention for their colonel before being dispatched to hand out the light bulbs in one of the capital’s poorest neighbourhoods.
“Today’s mission is vital for the health and development of the nation. And it comes directly on orders from the commander-in-chief,” barks the colonel.
BBC News article continues here.