Logistics & Transport
PDVSA claims operations are normal at main oil port
State
oil company PDVSA says it guarantees that operations are normal at its main oil
port, adding it had provided "uninterrupted"
services to an average of 56 tankers per month. Reuters had reported heavy
backlogs in tanker loadings at the port of Jose, which a union leader and a
legislator said were the result of technical problems with loading arms. "PDVSA guarantees normal loading and dispatch
at the (port of Jose)," the company wrote on its Twitter account. The
company said that 70% of the production exported from Venezuela, equivalent to
around 1.5 million barrels per day, are loaded at Jose. Reuters had reported
that some 70 tankers were anchored around state-run PDVSA's ports in Venezuela
and the Caribbean, most of them waiting to load oil for exports and also to
discharge imported crude and products, according to Thomson Reuters vessel
tracking data. (Reuters, http://www.reuters.com/article/us-oil-venezuela-backlog-idUSKCN0WS00V;
http://www.reuters.com/article/oil-venezuela-backlog-idUSL2N16W1C7)
Oil & Energy
Ex-officials at Venezuela's PDVSA pleaded guilty in
bribe case: U.S.
Three
former officials at Venezuela's state oil company have pleaded guilty to U.S.
charges related to a scheme by two businessmen to corruptly secure energy
contracts, the U.S. Justice Department announced. The former officials at
Petroleos de Venezuela S.A. (PDVSA) pleaded guilty under seal in December to
conspiracy to commit money laundering. Their pleas were unsealed by a federal
judge in Houston on Tuesday. The ex-PDVSA officials are Jose Luis Ramos
Castillo, 38; Christian Javier Maldonado Barillas, 39; and Alfonzo Eliezer
Gravina Munoz, 53. The U.S. Justice Department said each has admitted to
accepting bribes from two Venezuelan businessmen, Roberto Rincon and Abraham
Jose Shiera Bastidas, who were charged in December with violating the Foreign
Corrupt Practices Act. (Reuters, http://www.reuters.com/article/us-venezuela-usa-corruption-idUSKCN0WP1YC;
Latin American Herald Tribune, http://www.laht.com/article.asp?ArticleId=2408655&CategoryId=10717)
Commodities
Guayana basic industries at minimum operations due to
energy crisis
According
to union leaders, Guayana’s basic industries had never reached a level of
activity as low as they currently operate at, due to lack of spare parts,
maintenance, and the Guri dam’s inability to generate electricity due to the
severe drought. Henry Arias, Secretary General of the union at the ALCASA
aluminum works reports the plant is working at 15.5% capacity. More in Spanish:
(El Nacional, http://www.el-nacional.com/mundo/Empresas-basicas-Guayana-trabajan-energetica_0_818918182.html)
Debt with TETRA PAK curbs liquid milk supply
Roger
Figueroa, President of the Venezuelan Dairy Chamber (CAVILAC) reports that a
US$ 70 million long overdue debt with TETRA Pak is limiting the supply of
packing material. More in Spanish: (El Mundo, http://www.elmundo.com.ve/noticias/economia/gremios/deuda-con-tetra-pak-frena-abastecimiento-de-leche.aspx#ixzz44HmnEx9O)
GENERAL MILLS exits Venezuela
GENERAL MILLS, the company behind Cheerios and
Häagen-Dazs ice cream, has called time on its operations in Venezuela. The US company said it has sold its
subsidiary in the country to an unnamed third party in a move that will leave
it with a US$ 35m charge. GENERAL MILLS’s exit follows that of bleach maker
CLOROX, which took a charge of more than US$ 600m to end its operations there.
Venezuela’s controls and the government’s frequently shifting currency policy
has proved a headache for US multinationals, who have struggled to take cash
out of the country. Venezuela, which is grappling with runaway inflation, a
weak oil price and crumbling tax revenues, accounted for less than 1% of
GENERAL MILLS’s net sales, the company said in its annual report. (Financial
Times: http://www.ft.com/fastft/2016/03/23/cheerios-maker-general-mills-exits-venezuela/)
Economy & Finance
CREDIT SUISSE projects Venezuela’s 2016 inflation at
326.5%, GDP contraction at 6.5%
CREDIT
SUISSE is currently projecting that Venezuela’s 2016 inflation rate will hit
326.5% and social conditions here will worsen over the next months. It also
says the contraction in Venezuela’s GDP – projected by them at 6.5% - will be
one of the worst in the world, hit by FOREX scarcity, three-digit inflation,
and an environment of political and economic uncertainty. More in Spanish: (Notitarde,
http://www.notitarde.com/Economia/Proyectan-inflacion-de-3265-para-Venezuela-este-ano-2016-2642351/2016/03/27/924468/;
El Nacional, http://www.el-nacional.com/economia/Credit-Suisse-proyecta-inflacion-Venezuela_0_818318297.html)
Total Venezuelan revenues at US$ 147 million in
January-February 2016
President
Nicolas Maduro has reported that US$ 147 million entered this year in January
and February. He explained that before
the drop in oil prices, US$ 3.5 billion used to flow in the country. He spelled
out that revenues last January amounted to US$ 77 million, down to US$ 70
million in February. (El
Universal: http://www.eluniversal.com/economia/160324/venezuelan-revenues-at-usd-147-million-in-january-february-2016)
Venezuela continues to raid its reserves to pay its
debts, political transition anticipated
Venezuela
has not released its gold holdings since November of last year when they were
US$ 10.97 billion, but a Swiss Federal Customs Administration Report reveals
that Venezuela shipped 11,982 kilograms of gold worth US$ 456 million to
Switzerland in February. And a Caracas online newspaper managed to get ahold of
an Air France bill of lading showing that another 12, 561 kilograms of gold bars
were flown out of Venezuela just two weeks ago on March 8, meaning at least
another half-billion has left the country this month. The famed market watcher
Dennis Gartman writes that “there is news
that Venezuela…a country that is obviously in very, very serious financial
straits… has been an aggressive and consistent seller [of gold].” He
continued, “Venezuela has been selling
gold since mid-year last year, but the pace of its selling…as evidenced by the
decline in its official reserves…has accelerated of late. The recent run-up in
prices has given the Central Bank there and the lunatic government in Caracas a
wind-fall that they have apparently not been willing to pass up.” While
March was a light month in terms of interest on its foreign bond debt – under
US$ 300 million – April’s bond payments ramp up to US$ 782 million, with just
under US$ 1 billion in May. The Central Bank president has confirmed it had
been carrying out gold swaps. "It's
normal, all central banks do this," said Nelson Merentes, adding that
the operations have time frames of three to four years with multiple banks,
which he did not identify. "As part
of our strategy, the (central bank's) board of directors has decided to carry
out swaps." Siobhan Morden, of NOMURA Securities, says today that
evidence of continued economic stress is the leading indicator of “an irreversible process toward political
transition.” She notes February’s 514% year-over-year increase in
inflation, and adds: “We continue to
reiterate that it has to get worse before it gets better but the intensity of
the crisis reaffirms our view of a political transition and an economic
transition that would argue for much higher potential recovery value.” (Reuters,
http://www.reuters.com/article/venezuela-gold-switzerland-idUSL2N16U1UR;
BARRON’s: http://blogs.barrons.com/emergingmarketsdaily/2016/03/24/2-venezuela-experts-on-gold-sales-bond-risk-whats-next/;
Latinvest: http://www.scribd.com/doc/286044491/Latinvest-Venezuela-Report-Bond-Debts-20-October-2015;
Kitco News: http://www.kitco.com/news/2016-03-23/Venezuela-s-Woes-Weighing-on-Gold-Dennis-Gartman.html)
Switzerland to hand Venezuela oil firm bank records to
U.S.
In a
widening corruption probe into Venezuela's state oil company by U.S.
authorities, Swiss regulators have agreed to provide U.S. prosecutors with
records from at least 18 banks relating to the oil firm. The requests for
information from two separate U.S. authorities were part of their
investigations into alleged money laundering and corruption in connection with
the conclusion of energy contracts with Petroleos de Venezuela SA (PDVSA), Switzerland's
Federal Office of Justice (FOJ) said. U.S. authorities say they have traced
over US$ 1 billion to a conspiracy involving a Venezuelan magnate who allegedly
paid bribes to obtain contracts from PDVSA. They are separately investing
representatives of Venezuelan energy company DERWICK Associates, which has done
business with PDVSA, based on the FOJ's statements. (Reuters, http://www.reuters.com/article/us-pdvsa-corruption-switzerland-idUSKCN0WR0X0;
Bloomberg, http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2016-03-24/swiss-banks-land-in-middle-of-money-laundering-probe-again)
Central Bank places securities for VEB 15 billion to
drain more liquidity
The
Central Bank of Venezuela (BCV) has placed VEB 15 billion (US$ 1.5 billion at
the official exchange rate of VEB 10 per US dollar) in special absorption
operations. The term for placement of securities is 56 days at a 7% interest
rate and a minimum negotiated amount of VEB 10,000 (US$ 1,000). The auction (at
100%), which was scheduled for March 22 this year for public and private
sectors, aimed at freezing a part of excess liquidity of the market to help
control inflationary effects. Venezuela's financial bodies have been conducting
non-stop this kind of operations to control over the currency in circulation in
the country. (El
Universal, http://www.eluniversal.com/economia/160328/bcv-places-securities-for-veb-15-billion-to-drain-more-liquidity)
Politics and International Affairs
63.6 % polled say Maduro must leave office this year,
90.9% call economic situation negative.
The
most recent poll by DATANALISIS reveals that 63.4% of all Venezuelans polled
disapprove of President Nicolás Maduro’s administration and believe his term
should end in 2016; 29.3% want him to serve his full term to 2019. 90.9% of
those polled see the economic situation as negative. 52.1% of those consulted
say they would vote to revoke Maduro´s mandate in a referendum while his total
approval rating was 33.1%. A recall referendum must be formally requested by at
least 20% of almost 19 million voters and votes for him to leave must be more
than almost 7.5 million votes for him in the 2013 election. DATANALISIS
projects estimate at least 7.49 million people would vote to dismiss Maduro. Henrique
Capriles, who lost to Maduro in the 2013 presidential elections and is leading
the drive for the President’s recall, heads the opposition in popular support.
More in Spanish: (Infolatam, http://www.infolatam.com/2016/03/27/un-636-de-venezolanos-encuestados-dice-maduro-debe-dejar-el-poder-este-ano/;
Notitarde, http://www.notitarde.com/Economia/909-percibe-la-situacion-economica-como-negativa/2016/03/27/923333)
Pope Francis calls for talks, mutual respect in
Venezuela
Pope
Francis urged Venezuelans to hold talks and collaborate with each other. During
the delivery of his paschal message from the central balcony of Saint Peter's
Basilica, Vatican, the pontiff requested that Jesus Christ's love message
"be conveyed even more to the
Venezuelan people, amid the hard times facing them, as well as to those who
have in their hands the country's destiny, to work for the common good through
dialogue and collaboration".
Francis expects that "the culture of joining, justice and mutual respect be promoted, which is the only thing that may guarantee the spiritual and material welfare of (Venezuelan) citizens." (El Universal, http://www.eluniversal.com/nacional-y-politica/160328/pope-francis-calls-for-talks-mutual-respect-in-venezuela)
Francis expects that "the culture of joining, justice and mutual respect be promoted, which is the only thing that may guarantee the spiritual and material welfare of (Venezuelan) citizens." (El Universal, http://www.eluniversal.com/nacional-y-politica/160328/pope-francis-calls-for-talks-mutual-respect-in-venezuela)
Maduro claims Obama heads plan to dominate Latin
America again
Following
US President Barack Obama’s visits to Cuba and Argentina, Venezuela’s President
Nicolas Maduro is claiming that Obama heads up an “imperial strategy” to once again dominate Latin America and the
Caribbean by “overthrowing”
governments such as that of Dilma Rousseff in Brazil or seeking to change
others, like Venezuela. He claims that the “strategy” includes “combating” “honest leaders” such as Rafael Correa in Ecuador, conducting smear
campaigns against Nicaragua’s Daniel Ortega and Argentina’s former president
Cristina Fernández. But, he added, “we
must all make great corrections within the wear and tear of governing Venezuela
for 17 years.” More in Spanish: (Infolatam, http://www.infolatam.com/2016/03/25/maduro-afirma-que-obama-encabeza-plan-para-volver-a-dominar-america-latina/)
Top court reviews the constitutionality of Central
Bank Law reform, a new clash looms with legislature
President
Nicolas Maduro has sent the reform of the Law of the Central Bank of Venezuela
(BCV) to the Constitutional Chamber of the Supreme Tribunal of Justice (TSJ) so
that the country's top court may assess the constitutionality of the bill,
passed on March 3 by the National Assembly (AN). The Congress' move came three
months after Maduro enacted, via enabling law, the BCV's law reform. National
Assembly authorities have ordered publication of the approved bill in light of
no response from the Executive within 10 days. (El Universal, http://www.eluniversal.com/nacional-y-politica/160328/venezuelas-top-court-assesses-constitutionality-of-bcv-law-reform;
and more in Spanish: El Nacional, http://www.el-nacional.com/politica/Parlamento-promulgo-Ley-BCV-Ejecutivo_0_819518327.html)
Ruling party politician slain, Colombia rejects baseless
charges
A
supporter of Venezuela’s ruling leftist PSUV party who served as an alternate
in the legislature of the western state of Tachira was gunned down in a town on
the Colombian border and his associates are pointing the finger at paramilitaries
based in the neighboring country. Tachira’s PSUV governor, Lieutenant Jose
Vielma Mora, was quick to refer to the gunmen who killed Cesar Vera as “assassins, terrorists who hate the people”
and linked the shooters to former Colombian President Alvaro Uribe. The
security commissioner in Tachira, Ramon Cabeza, said Vera, 40, was the victim
of a “paramilitary group.” Colombia’s
Foreign Ministry has issued a statement rejecting the accusation and asked
Vielma to show proof and refrain from branding inhabitants of the border area.
William Villamizar, Governor of Colombia’s adjoining Norte de Santander
department said the Tachira Governor should not issue charges “without prior investigations”. (Latin
American Herald Tribune, http://www.laht.com/article.asp?ArticleId=2408609&CategoryId=10717;
and more in Spanish: Caracol: http://caracol.com.co/emisora/2016/03/27/cucuta/1459104042_087851.html)
Dominican Republic antinarcotics authority slams judge
for ordering release of suspects
The
Dominican Republic’s National Drugs Control Agency (DNCD) has lashed out at an
interim judge there for releasing five Venezuelans arrested at La Romana
International Airport, with 359 kilos of cocaine. The surprising release order
for the Venezuelans is the latest scandal involving an interim judge in drug
trafficking and money laundering cases, where bribes are suspected. The
defendants were arrested by National Investigations Dept. (DNI), Justice
Ministry officials and antinarcotics (DNCD) agents, which confiscated a Cessna
C404, Barquisimeto, Venezuela registry YV2708. The drug was in 349 bricks in
three suitcases and two bags hidden on the plane. The DNCD said it was "outraged" by the ruling handed down
by La Romana (east) interim judge Aristida Mercedes to release the suspects
without bond. The La Romana Office of the Prosecutor on Monday said the five
Venezuelans charged with are still in custody. Venezuela’s Prosecutor General
has announced that three Bolivarian National Guard sergeants have been detained
at Barquisimeto’s airport in connection with the shipment. And Miami’s El Nuevo
Herald journalist Antonio María Delgado reports that diplomatic pressure by
Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro was behind the release order in the
Dominican Republic. (Dominican Today: http://www.dominicantoday.com/dr/local/2016/3/28/58712/Despite-judges-ruling-Venezuelans-in-369K-cocaine-case-still-in-jail;
and more in Spanish: http://www.elnuevoherald.com/noticias/mundo/america-latina/venezuela-es/article68531672.html#storylink=cpy;
Acento, http://acento.com.do/2016/actualidad/8335531-periodista-afirma-que-maduro-presiono-por-libertad-de-venezolanos-acusados-de-narcotrafico-en-rd/)
Police capture 3 for airport murder of Egyptian visitor
Interior
Minister General Gustavo Gonzalez has reported the capture of three people
suspected in the shooting death of an Egyptian man at the Maiquetía
International Airport. The Prosecutor General’s Office said in a communique
that the three suspects would appear in court later on Thursday. (Latin
American Herald Tribune, http://www.laht.com/article.asp?ArticleId=2408531&CategoryId=10717)
Increased violence against minors reported in
Venezuela
A rise
in violent acts -including frequency and intensity- against minors in Venezuela
was reported by organizations in charge of protecting human rights of children
and teenagers. In fact, on March 15-18, three minors were murdered: one during
an alleged shootout with police officers; other was kidnapped and killed; and a
third one was mistreated and molested by his stepfather. Add to this the case
of a two-month old baby who was left under a bridge by his own 18-year old
mother. Carlos Trapani, a representative from the Network of Children and
Teenagers' Human Rights of NGO Community Centers of Learning (CECODAP), warned
that "nowadays, there is much
violence and cruelty against minors." In his words, this shows the
risk facing childhood and adolescence in the country. (El Universal, http://www.eluniversal.com/nacional-y-politica/160326/increased-violence-against-minors-reported-in-venezuela)
Isturiz reveals there were almost 3 lootings daily
during Easter week
Executive
Vice President Aristóbulo Istúriz has revealed that there were 21 lootings, 22
kidnappings and 20 robberies at hospitals, which means there were 3 lootings
and 2 robberies daily during the Easter holidays. More in Spanish: (Tal Cual
Digital: http://www.talcualdigital.com/Nota/124577/aristobulo-revela-que-en-semana-santa-hubo-casi-3-saqueos-al-dia-video)
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.
