International Trade
Customs agents report 98% drop in private imports
Rusvel
Gutiérrez, President of the Vargas State Chamber of Merchants and Customs
Brokers (CADUAINCO) reports a 98% drop in private imports. He adds that “the government is the only importer in the
last four years”. He adds that the situation is hurting some 4,500 customs
agents nationwide that have had to cut payrolls, and that out of 1200 agents in
Vargas state only 50 are working sporadically; and that approximately only 100
out of 3000 cargo vehicles in state are have work. Eduardo Quintana, President
of the Vargas State Chamber of Commerce, says the drop is due to difficulties
in obtaining FOREX, and that imports into all the major ports in Venezuela “are very limited, there are very few ships
arriving” He adds that there are barely any exports, saying “there are no exports going from here
anywhere. Just go to the ports and check the situation, not even agricultural
products to Caribbean islands, we are exporting nothing”. More in Spanish:
(El Mundo: http://www.elmundo.com.ve/noticias/economia/gremios/aduaneros-reportan-caida-en-las-importaciones-priv.aspx#ixzz4IQpW4NLx)
Bilateral trade with Colombia is down 34%
The
Venezuela-Colombia Economic Integration Chamber (CAVECOL) reports that
bilateral trade shrank 34% in the first half of 2016, for a total US$ 510
million, down from US$ 770 million last year. The information is based on data
published by Colombia’s National Statistics Department (DANE). Trade has
averaged US$ 85 million per month. More in Spanish: (Notitarde, http://www.notitarde.com/El-comercio-entre-Venezuela-y-Colombia-se-redujo-34-/Economia/2016/08/30/1019802/; El
Universal, http://www.eluniversal.com/noticias/economia/comercio-entre-colombia-venezuela-contrajo_459320)
National port authority reports 3-fold increase in
monthly average 5-6 ships arriving in Venezuela
General
Efrain Velasco, President of Venezuela’s Port Authority, reports 210 tons of
food are being offloaded at several ports throughout the nation. He says 18 ships
from different countries have arrived this month, and added “there is a monthly average of 5-6 ships
entering the nation, which means this we have tripled the number this month,
bearing basic products” imported by the government. More in Spanish: (Agencia
Venezolana de Noticias; http://www.avn.info.ve/contenido/210-mil-toneladas-alimentos-proceso-descarga-puertos-ser%C3%A1n-distribuidas-pa%C3%ADs)
14,900 tons of corn and soy were offloaded at
Maracaibo port, according to regional port authority head General
José Noguera, who reports the cargo is aboard the SKAWA, and consigned to Alimentos
Balaceados del Zulia, Agropecuaria Nivar, Balanceados Lamar, Procesadora
Industrial C.A, and others. More in Spanish: (Bolipuertos, http://www.bolipuertos.gob.ve/noticia.aspx?id=34498; El
Mundo, http://www.elmundo.com.ve/noticias/economia/empresas/arribaron-al-puerto-de-maracaibo-14-900-toneladas.aspx)
Three ships bearing food, medicine and personal care
products arrived at La Guaira port in 193 containers, according to
local port authority head Admiral Carlos Martin. More in Spanish: (Bolipuertos,
http://www.bolipuertos.gob.ve/noticia.aspx?id=34496)
Logistics & Transport
Government bans private aircraft and drones from
flying through September 5th
Venezuela’s
National Civil Aeronautics Institute (INAC) has issued a communiqué barring
private aircraft, helicopters and even drones¿ from flying nationwide through
September 5th. Transportation and Public Works Minister says the
order is intended to “safeguard our
population”. More in Spanish: (Noticiero Venevision: http://www.noticierovenevision.net/nacionales/2016/agosto/27/167185=inac-prohibe-el-vuelo-de-aviones-privados-desde-este-sabado-hasta-el-5-de-septiembre; Agencia Venezolana
de Noticias; http://www.avn.info.ve/contenido/emiten-resoluci%C3%B3n-para-garantizar-seguridad-del-espacio-a%C3%A9reo)
Oil & Energy
Venezuela renews drilling tender after earlier
collapse
Venezuela's
state oil company, PDVSA, has relaunched a large tender for the drilling of 600
oil wells in the world's largest crude reserves, sources with knowledge of the
tender said this week, after a similar project collapsed last year amid
concerns about transparency and political favoritism. Reuters reported last
month that tiny Colombian trucking firm TRENACO, whose management was close to
Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro, won a multibillion-dollar contract to
carry out similar work despite having no relevant experience. In a rare
rebellion, foreign oil companies protested to PDVSA that TRENACO was vastly
underqualified, leading to the cancellation of the US$ 4.5 billion deal. (Reuters,
http://www.reuters.com/article/us-venezuela-pdvsa-contract-exclusive-idUSKCN1112D7)
Venezuela oil price rises above US$ 40
The price
Venezuela receives for its mix of medium and heavy oil continued rising off of
its early August low of US$ 33.36 for a third straight week, making it over the
US$ 40 a barrel threshold. According to figures released by the Ministry
of Petroleum and Mining, the average price of Venezuelan crude sold by
Petroleos de Venezuela S.A. (PDVSA) during the week ending August 26 was US$ 40.44,
up US$ 1.04 from the previous week's US$ 39.40.
According to Venezuelan government figures, the average price in 2016 for Venezuela's mix of heavy and medium crude is now US$ 32.61 for the year to date. Venezuela's average oil price for 2015 was US$ 44.65, down from 2014's US$ 88.42, below 2013's US$ 98.08, 2012's US$ 103.42. (Latin American Herald Tribune, http://www.laht.com/article.asp?ArticleId=2419682&CategoryId=10717)
According to Venezuelan government figures, the average price in 2016 for Venezuela's mix of heavy and medium crude is now US$ 32.61 for the year to date. Venezuela's average oil price for 2015 was US$ 44.65, down from 2014's US$ 88.42, below 2013's US$ 98.08, 2012's US$ 103.42. (Latin American Herald Tribune, http://www.laht.com/article.asp?ArticleId=2419682&CategoryId=10717)
Commodities
Maduro claims Barrick signs on to Venezuela gold push
as oil sinks economy
President
Nicolas Maduro says Barrick Gold Corp. has agreed to form a joint venture in
Venezuela, in the hope that mining can boost one of the fastest-shrinking
economies in the world. He said the world’s biggest producer of the precious
metal was among several companies to sign letters of commitment for gold-mining
ventures in Caracas last Friday. The government would take a 55% stake in the
proposed Barrick venture, Maduro said. Andy Lloyd, a spokesman for
Toronto-based Barrick, simply says “at
the invitation of the government, we intend to review information pertaining to
mining opportunities in the country”. Maduro claims Venezuela has signed
over US$ 5.5 billion in mining deals with companies including Canada's Barrick
Gold Corp and China's Shandong Gold. "Today
we are signing investments and letters of commitment for projects for over $5.5
billion," said Maduro in a televised meeting with foreign mining
executives. (Bloomberg, http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2016-08-26/barrick-signs-on-to-venezuela-mining-push-as-oil-pummels-economy;
Reuters, http://www.reuters.com/article/us-venezuela-mining-idUSKCN1112BR)
Minister says it was a mistake to increase personnel
at the SIDOR steel complex
Basic
Industries Minister Juan Arias says the country needs to replace the policy of
exporting raw material with finished product exports, including industrial
components so that Venezuela can obtain “added
value” from those transactions. He noted that “the rent-seeking model has to be uprooted”, and added that
Venezuela should replace bauxite or alumina exports with exports of finished
products such as aluminum and iron-derived products. He admitted that
increasing personnel – currently some 17,400 workers – at state-run Orinoco
Iron and the SIDOR steel complex— was mistaken, since less than half of the
staff actually works. “There is an
erroneous view of what workers control really means; management by workers,”
he pointed out. (El
Universal, http://www.eluniversal.com/noticias/daily-news/minister-increasing-staff-steel-company-sidor-was-wrong-policy_450025)
FAO forecasts reduced cereal production in Venezuela
this year
Cereal
production will fall to 2.8 million tons this year in Venezuela, below the average
of 3.2 million in the previous four years due to drought associated with El
Niño and economic crisis, says to the Food and Agriculture organization (FAO). Sources
at the FAO Global Information and Early Warning System say that El Niño has
affected the country from February 2015 to June this year, causing a prolonged
drought and less rainfall, thus significantly reducing the availability of
irrigation water. "This has had an
adverse impact on crops during the harvest of 2015 and reduced yields. El Niño
also decreased crop harvest in the first season of 2016 in Venezuela, mainly
rice, which was sown until late last year,” the sources said. (El Universal, http://www.eluniversal.com/noticias/daily-news/fao-forecasts-reduced-cereal-production-venezuela-this-year_450005)
Economy & Finance
CITIBANK serves notice that it will no longer process
payment of PDVSA bonds
CITIBANK
has sent notice to PDVSA bond holders that it will no longer process that
company’s bond payments, and says the state oil company must “name a new main agent as soon as possible”,
at which time CITIBANK’s says its obligation will have ended. More in Spanish: (El
Nacional, http://www.el-nacional.com/economia/Citibank-agente-pagador-bonos-Pdvsa_0_911909112.html)
Politics and International Affairs
Venezuelans mobilize for vote to recall President
Nicolas Maduro
A wave
of thousands of Venezuelans is descending on Caracas as part of a last-gasp
effort by the country’s opposition to try to force President Nicolas Maduro to
hold a referendum on his rule—a vote he is fiercely resisting, with polls
saying it would lead to his removal. The mobilization will culminate on
Thursday in a mass rally the opposition hopes will draw hundreds of thousands
of Venezuelans to the streets of the capital, making a show of strength against
a government overseeing the country’s worst economic collapse since its
independence in 1811. This week’s protest may be the last, best chance to force
a referendum that would almost certainly end a deeply unpopular government. The
opposition has been trying to hold the plebiscite, as set out in the country’s
constitution, since March, but election officials have delayed giving the green
light. “This is a huge event. It’s the
biggest test of the opposition’s strength and the government’s tolerance of
dissent in years,” said Javier Corrales, professor of Latin American
studies at Amherst College in Massachusetts. “The opposition is really running out of time to achieve their goal of
the referendum this year.” The government wants to put off the vote until
next year. If the vote takes place after Jan. 10 and Maduro is ousted, a vice
president of his choosing would serve out the term ending in 2019. A referendum
held before that date wouldn’t only remove the president but also trigger new
elections, which polls show would end 17 years of Socialist government. The
national electoral council earlier this month gave a preliminary schedule for
the referendum that suggested the vote might take place in February. Maduro’s
control of courts, prosecutors and electoral officials has left street protests
as the only means to pressure the government to comply with the laws, said
Jesus Torrealba, head of the Democratic Unity opposition alliance. Maduro, who has Venezuela’s lowest
presidential approval ratings in almost two decades, isn't taking any chances.
He has called supporters to hold a separate march in downtown Caracas on the
same day and has banned all private planes and drones this week, a move the
opposition says is meant to prevent images of antigovernment crowds from
circulating around the world. Meanwhile, Caracas has taken on the feel of a
city bracing for war. In recent weeks, the military built sandbag emplacements
with armored vehicles outside key tunnels connecting parts of the capital. The
opposition says the soldiers will try to prevent busloads of supporters from
reaching the capital on Thursday, a strategy the government has employed in provincial
rallies in the past. In the town of Villa de Cura, shop assistant Eloy Durán
vowed not to let authorities prevent him from joining the rally. “If the soldiers stop us, we will get out of
the buses and start walking,” he said, and added that he has lost 44 pounds
this year because of food shortages, in what he and other Venezuelans jokingly
call “the Nicolás Maduro Diet.” “The
recall referendum is the only peaceful exit from this government,” he said.
(The Wall Street Journal: http://www.wsj.com/articles/venezuelans-mobilize-for-vote-to-recall-president-nicolas-maduro-1472504412)
Venezuela on the brink, large protest seeks to
pressure President recall
The
stakes are high for the September 1 protests, says Siobhan Morden, a managing
director for Latin America at NOMURA Securities in New York. She says the S1
protest could influence intervention for a recall vote this year. If the
protest fails, then it’s an uncertain path towards political transition in a
post-Maduro world. “The worsening economic
and social crisis should eventually force military intervention with (PSUV)
probably more receptive for a transition next year that forces the departure of
President Maduro without the risk of new elections,” Morden says. New
elections would oust PSUV from Venezuela’s government. But a handover to others
in Maduro’s coalition may be able to stop some of the bloodletting in the party
of Hugo Chavez. Any political transition depends not only on the moderate
turnover from the current radical leadership (who all equally poll low approval
ratings similar to Maduro) but also the inclusion of the opposition. According
to pollsters at DATANALISIS, Maduro’s approval rating is 21.2%. Some 50% of
those polled want anyone but PSUV. And another 75% want elections this year.
Another survey, this one by VENEBAROMETRO in July, shows that 34.4% support
Maduro’s immediate resignation, but 27.9% support waiting for the general
election in 2018. The September 1 “taking
of Caracas” is yet another chapter in the final act of Venezuela’s
socialist experiment. It also serves as a potential leverage from the
opposition to pressure the government for a recall referendum this year or
resignation of Maduro. “The premise is
that hardcore supporters from the countryside converge on Caracas to reach much
higher participation than previous protest marches with higher visibility ... that
encourages intervention from the international diplomatic community,”
Morden says. “The stakes are now much
higher with growing frustration that voters cannot express their discontent at
the polls. The streets are the next — and possibly only — recourse.” (Forbes:
http://www.forbes.com/sites/kenrapoza/2016/08/19/venezuela-on-the-brink-large-protest-seeks-to-pressure-president-to-resign/#2a70e386f4c1)
Maduro charges that the opposition and the US
government are plotting destabilization on Sep. 1st.
President
Nicolas Maduro has again claimed that the United States government is trying to
stage a coup d’etat here. He said “we are
taking to the streets to tell the world that there is a fascist coup underway
that is directed by the United States in order to plague Venezuela with
violence”, and added that the opposition Democratic Unity (MUD) coalition “has decided to break the rules of the game”,
and that starting September 1st and through the end of the year the
government will engage in a “revolutionary
counter offensive”. Executive Vice President Aristobulo Istúriz also called
the scheduled September 1st opposition demonstration “a destabilizing, coup plan to overthrow
President Maduro.” Daniel Aponte, the government-appointed governor of
Caracas, says the opposition march scheduled for September 1st will not enter
Caracas. And Venezuela’s Interior Minister General Nestor Reverol claims to
have uncovered an alleged opposition destabilization plan scheduled for
September 1st and says he will provide more details in the next few
days. (Latin American Herald Tribune, http://www.laht.com/article.asp?ArticleId=2419600&CategoryId=10717);
and more in Spanish: (Noticiero Venevision: http://www.noticierovenevision.net/politica/2016/agosto/27/167188=maduro-aseguro-que-la-oposicion-junto-al-gobierno-de-eeuu-intentan-dar-un-golpe-de-estado-;
http://www.noticierovenevision.net/politica/2016/agosto/28/167263=aristobulo-isturiz-denuncio-que-la-oposicion-intenta-derrocar-al-presidente-nicolas-maduro-; http://www.noticierovenevision.net/nacionales/2016/agosto/29/167322=ministro-reverol-alerta-sobre-supuesto-plan-desestabilizador-de-la-oposicion-para-el-1-s)
Former mayor Ceballos sent back to prison from house
arrest; US slams move, seeks his release
Intelligence
agents on Saturday took Daniel Ceballos, a former opposition mayor accused of
fomenting opposition protests, to prison from house arrest in the capital of
Caracas, according to his wife and the country's interior ministry. Ceballos
had been released from prison last year and placed under house arrest for
health reasons. In a statement, the
interior ministry said he was planning to escape this month. It said Ceballos had planned to coordinate
acts of violence at an opposition demonstration planned for 1 September. Ceballos
was arrested in 2014 on accusations he helped lead violent unrest in the
tumultuous western city of San Cristobal, where he was mayor. He denies the
accusations. Opposition leaders called his arrest an effort to quash dissent
and describe Ceballos as a political prisoner. President Nicolas Maduro calls
him a criminal who sought to destabilize the country, and denies Venezuela
holds political prisoners. Patricia de Ceballos said agents from the SEBIN
intelligence service arrived at their residence at around 3 a.m. saying they
were going to conduct a medical exam for her husband, who was granted house
arrest in 2015 for health reasons. The US State Department said “this transfer is an attempt to intimidate
and block the Venezuelan people’s right to peacefully express their opinion on
September 1st. We condemn it and ask for his immediate release”.
Department spokesman John Kirby added that “the
most basic underpinnings of the rule of law in Venezuela have been degraded to
an alarming level”. (Reuters, http://www.reuters.com/article/us-venezuela-politics-idUSKCN1120MJ;
BBC News: http://www.bbc.com/news/world-latin-america-37206563;
Latin American Herald Tribune, http://www.laht.com/article.asp?ArticleId=2419673&CategoryId=10717);
and more in Spanish: (El Nacional, http://www.el-nacional.com/politica/EE-UU-Venezuela-Daniel-Ceballos_0_911308941.html
Another opposition leader detained
The
Voluntad Popular party’s national coordinator, Congressman Freddy Guevara, has
confirmed that one of its leaders, Yon Goicoechea, has been taken without a
warrant by a group of armed officials and is in the custody of the SEBIN
intelligence agency. He called the detention “illegal and arbitrary” and called
the move a ruse to scare the opposition in advance of demonstrations scheduled
in Caracas on September 1st. More in Spanish: (El Nacional, http://www.el-nacional.com/politica/Yon-Goicoechea-llevado-Sebin_0_911909064.html)
Public officials to be reprimanded they do not attend
pro-government demonstration
Marlene
Sifontes, a leader in the National Parks Institute Union says an order is out
to dock one day’s pay and reprimand any government employee that does not
attend a pro-government demonstration scheduled for September 1st.
Servando Carbone, a leader in the National Public Sector Workers Federation
says the government is also trying to bribe its employees, but says they are
too irate over abuse”. More in Spanish: (El Nacional, http://www.el-nacional.com/economia/Denuncian-amonestaran-funcionarios-marcha-oficialista_0_910109259.html)
Ecuador asks Venezuela to explain expelling Ecuadorian
legislators
Ecuador’s
government has asked the regime here to provide more information on an incident
that took place last week in Caracas. Ecuadorian legislators Cynthia Viteri –
who is a presidential candidate - and Henry Cucalón were forced to leave the
country when they tried to visit imprisoned opposition leader Leopoldo Lopez.
Ecuador’s Foreign Ministry expressed “concern
over the incident” and asked Venezuela to “guarantee the constitutional
rights” of Ecuadorian citizens. Viteri reports their experience in Venezuela
was “terrifying”. The Venezuelan
Embassy in Quito retorted that what was applied was the cancellation of their
authorization to remain in Venezuela territory, saying they “engaged in proselytism and destabilizing
activities” and “flagrantly
interfered in the domestic affairs of Venezuela”. More in Spanish:
(Noticiero Venevision: http://www.noticierovenevision.net/internacionales/2016/agosto/27/167159=ecuador-pide-a-venezuela-ampliar-informacion-sobre-incidente-con-legisladores
Venezuela names new Ambassador to Iran, announces
fresh dynamism in relations
President
Nicolas Maduro named General Jesus Gonzalez as the country’s new ambassador to
Iran on Saturday, while announcing the beginning of a new dynamic era in
Caracas-Tehran bilateral relations. Maduro made these announcements at a
Caracas meeting with Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif, who arrived
in the country sooner than expected on the final leg of his South American
tour, after having visited Cuba, Nicaragua, Ecuador, Chile and Bolivia. (Latin
American Herald Tribune, http://www.laht.com/article.asp?ArticleId=2419683&CategoryId=10717)
Colombians living in Venezuela flock home to escape
crisis
At
least 700 people from Venezuela exhausted by shortages of food, medicines and
more in that country, have descended on the small Colombian village of Bayunca
north of Cartagena looking for a better life. “Natives and non-natives who left many years ago and, due to everything
they have to put up with (in Venezuela), are coming to Bayunca, but
empty-handed,” the head of the village’s Afro-Colombian community council,
Juana Frasual Matute, told EFE. (Latin American Herald Tribune, http://www.laht.com/article.asp?ArticleId=2419637&CategoryId=10717)
The following brief
is a synthesis of the news as reported by a variety of media sources. As such,
the views and opinions expressed do not necessarily reflect those of Duarte
Vivas & Asociados and The Selinger Group.
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