International Trade
Incoming cargo at Puerto Cabello
- 25,000 tons of soy from
Argentina for Consorcio Oleaginoso Portuguesa
- 21,000 tons of chemicals from
Russia
- More than 14,000 tons of soy
oil from Argentina for Granja Avícola Chichi, Alimentos Balanceados
Tinaquillo, Consorcio Oleaginoso Portuguesa and Alibal
- Over 14,000 tons of wheat from
Terra World Trade for Molinos Carabobo.
- 1,721 tons of milk and cream
from Argentina, for CASA
- Over 1,000 tons of vehicle
parts from China
- Over 1,544 tons of whole milk
powder and skim milk powder from Uruguay of General Alimentos Nisa
- 818 tons of corn from Argentina
- 683 tons of tires from Brasil
and China for Corporación de Automotriz ZGT
- 492 tons of newsprint paper
from Brazil for Industria Endógena Venezolana de Papel (INVEPAL)
- 285 tons of margarine from
Brazil, for CASA
- 281 tons of electric
transformers from Colombia for Corporación Eléctrica Nacional (CORPOELEC)
- Over 216 tons of mozzarella and
edam cheese from Uruguay
- Bags and sacks for the
Venezuelan Cement Corporation
- Telephone parts and plastic
parts
Eleven vessels were reported to be at anchor in
Puerto Cabello, 3 of them bearing fertilizers, 4 with containers, one with oil,
one carrying sugar and another corn. More in Spanish: (Notitarde; http://www.notitarde.com/La-Costa/Arribo-leche-en-polvo-entera-y-descremada-2181021/2014/06/18/333879; Notitarde; http://www.notitarde.com/La-Costa/25-mil-toneladas-de-soya-llegaron-a-Puerto-Cabello-2180444/2014/06/17/333667; http://www.notitarde.com/La-Costa/Al-puerto-llegaron-leche-y-nata-para-la-Corporacion-de-Abastecimiento-2181719/2014/06/19/334044)
Logistics & Transport
No cargo to transport
Heavy load carriers say the drop in private
imports, along with scarce spare parts, is hitting their trade heavily. José
Petit, of the Puerto Cabello Container Cargo Association (ASOTRACONTAINER) says
private imports have dropped by 80% so far this year. More in Spanish: (Notitarde;
http://www.notitarde.com/La-Costa/No-hay-cargas-que-transportar-2181020/2014/06/18/333878)
Local industry faces a 60 to 80% loss in net
worth over the next
weeks due to rising import expenses after the National Port Authority (BOLIPUERTOS)
adjusted its fees to the SICAD 2 rate and the Tax Authority (SENIAT) started
basing import taxes on the type of exchange rate used to purchase goods. (Veneconomy,
http://www.veneconomy.com/site/index.asp?ids=44&idt=39840&idc=3)
Oil &
Energy
PDVSA’s revenues from the sale of crude oil and
by-products dropped 8% inter-annually in 2013 from U$D 124.4 billion in 2012 to U$D 113.9
billion, according to its annual report. On the other hand, debts were up 28% (U$D
21.4 billion), compared to last year’s financial report. (Veneconomy, http://www.veneconomy.com/site/index.asp?ids=44&idt=39842&idc=4)
Commodities
Chemical industry may
come to a standstill
Andrés Pérez, President of the Carabobo State
Industrial Chamber, says the next industries to come to a halt in that region
are those that produce chemical products such as resins, pigments, paint and
adhesives. Polyurethane producing industries could also suffer the
consequences. Polyurethane is used for the production of shoe soles, hoses,
rubber for automobile parts, and mattresses. More in Spanish: (El Carabobeño, http://www.el-carabobeno.com/economa/articulo/83868/empresas-qumicas-podran-ser-las-prximas-en-paralizarse)
POLAR Food Division could be the next to shut
down
POLAR's food division is working with remaining
inventories and if they do not receive supplies they could be the next to shut
down, according to Jhonny Magdaleno, of POLAR's Metal-graphic plant union. He
said production has continued because the government made a partial payment to
Brazil, but supplies from Germany will not arrive because purveyors have not
been paid. José Ruiz, Secretary General of the POLAR Packaging Union says
material for packing and aluminum lids are all imported. More in Spanish: (El
Carabobeño; http://www.el-carabobeno.com/economa/articulo/83921/alimentos-polar-podra-ser-la-prxima-en-paralizarse)
Economy &
Finance
BARCLAY'S: "Venezuela is facing economic collapse"
A report by BARCLAYS Capital says "the nation is facing economic collapse"
as the government has lost the notion of urgency for economic reforms. It says
FOREX continues to be scarce, along with currency devaluation and inflation,
and now estimates economic growth to be -2.9%. It indicates the government's
response seems to be more public spending. More in Spanish: (El Nacional; http://www.el-nacional.com/)
Ramírez claims Venezuela holds solid international
reserves
Economic Affairs Vice President Rafael
Ramírez claims the government has enough international reserves to meet debt
obligations, imports and guarantee funds for social spending. "Contrary to
media reports, Venezuela has maintained a perfectly manageable debt average,
under 4% of income", he said in a press release, and added they would be
soon reinforced by funds from the National Development Fund and the Chinese
Fund. More in Spanish: (Agencia Venezolana de Noticias; http://www.avn.info.ve/contenido/venezuela-cuenta-s%C3%B3lido-volumen-reservas-internacionales)
Construction has dropped steadily over the last
17 quarters, says
Construction Chamber head Jaime Gómez. He explains that 60,000-70,000 housing
units have been usually built in one year, and “this year we won’t make it to 20,000.” As to expectations for the next
year, Gómez says “the remainder of 2013
units will be finished because there are no new projects.” (Veneconomy, http://www.veneconomy.com/site/index.asp?ids=44&idt=39839&idc=3)
Tourists must now
prove legal purchase of bolivars
Foreign tourists who travel to Venezuela will be required to
demonstrate that they obtained their local currency legally as the government
seeks to clamp down on the black market. Hotels and travel agencies must
require foreign tourists to provide a receipt that shows that any bolivars used
are obtained on a legal exchange. “The government is looking to force tourists
to change currency at the official rate and capture dollars from tourism in the
Sicad II market,” Asdrubal Oliveros,
director of Caracas-based consultancy Ecoanalitica, said today by telephone. “The tourism sector generates very little
revenue, and the measure will be difficult to enforce.” (Bloomberg, http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2014-06-19/venezuela-requires-tourists-to-prove-legal-purchase-of-bolivars.html)
Politics
Maduro fires Planning
Minister Giordani, more devaluation predicted
In a move Bank of America Corp. says is a
prelude to further devaluation, beleaguered President Nicolas Maduro has
replaced long-time economic Planning Minister Jorge Giordani with Ricardo
Menendez, a geographer and urban planner who is a former Minister of Industry.
Giordani, a hard line Communist, masterminded the rigid system of price and
exchange controls in place since 2003. "Unfortunately, Giordani's Marxist policies destroyed Venezuela's
economy, but the destruction was only revealed after oil prices stopped their
meteoric rise in the years before Chavez died," said Russ Dallen, head
of Venezuela investment bank Caracas Capital Markets. “Giordani’s exit confirms the radical wing in the government has lost
influence over economic policy,” says Bank of America’s Francisco
Rodriguez, who adds that this increases the chances of a faster devaluation of
the bolivar. Former opposition Presidential candidate Henrique Capriles says
"ministers can change, but the model
continues to be non-viable"; and Dallen adds: "Although getting rid of some of the more
extreme Marxists is positive, it is like reorganizing the chairs on the deck of
the Titanic." Economists say his ouster was designed to shore up an
embattled president and give more influence over economic matters to the
country's powerful energy minister and VP for Economic Affairs, Rafael Ramirez,
and the military. Maduro also named General Hebert Garcia Plaza as Food
Minister replacing General Felix Osorio. General Luis Graterol replaced Garcia
Plaza as Air and Sea Transport Minister. (Latin America Herald Tribune: http://www.laht.com/article.asp?ArticleId=2340573&CategoryId=10717;
El Universal, http://www.eluniversal.com/economia/140618/menendez-replaces-giordani-as-head-of-planning;
Wall Street Journal: http://online.wsj.com/news/articles/SB10001424052702304034804579632750483503992?tesla=y&tesla=y&mg=reno64-wsj&url=http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052702304034804579632750483503992.html)
Giordani's critical
reaction to firing draws "traitor"
charge by Maduro
In a highly publicized open letter, deposed
Minister Jorge Giordani says Maduro "does
not transmit leadership and there is a sense of a power vacuum in the
President's office". He accused the President of out-of-control
spending, saying Maduro is “giving out
massive resources to everyone who is asking for them without a fiscal program
based on socialist planning”. But he also admits public spending reached
extreme heights during the 2012 campaign to reelect Hugo Chavez. Giordani
claims private sector pressure "seems
to be leading to reinstalling capitalist financial mechanisms", in an
apparent reference changes in FOREX policies; and blasts the "independence of PDVSA from central control".
Metropolitan Caracas Mayor Antonio Ledezma termed the letter "an atomic bomb". Former legislator
María Corina Machado called it "the
best example of the regime's moral degradation". Former National
Assembly President Fernando Soto Rojas, an orthodox Marxist, said "debating ideas cannot be stopped", but
regretted the government PSUV party did not know of the letter before it was
published. But President Maduro spoke of "traitors" with "petty
bourgeois egos" in an indirect reference to Giordani, while PSUV
leader Jorge Rodríguez pleaded for unity in view of "hard times ahead".
(Bloomberg: http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2014-06-18/venezuela-s-maduro-replaces-giordani-in-cabinet-reshuffle.html;
Veneconomy, http://www.veneconomy.com/site/index.asp?ids=44&idt=39841&idc=2;
El Universal, http://www.eluniversal.com/economia/140619/giordanis-removal-from-office-unveils-crisis-in-public-administration:
and more in Spanish: Aporrea, http://www.aporrea.org/ideologia/a190011.html;
Infolatam)
60% consider Maduro's
performance to be negative
A recent poll by Alfredo Keller &
Associates shows 60% of those interviewed consider President Maduro's
performance negative, 67% say the nation's situation is also negative, and 68%
believe the economy has worsened. 71% disagree with the Fair Cost and Price Law
which establishes that any business may be expropriated whenever the government
wants to. More in Spanish: (El Nacional; http://www.el-nacional.com/)
María Corina Machado is banned from leaving
Venezuela after
Judge Adriana López (the same judge who remanded Leopoldo López) issued a
travel ban following a request from the Attorney General’s Office. Although
nothing is a surprise within “revolutionary
justice,” the travel ban is odd since Machado has not even been summoned to
testify in the investigation into the violent events of February 12 which is
the case assigned to López. (Veneconomy, http://www.veneconomy.com/site/index.asp?ids=44&idt=39852&idc=1;
El Universal, http://www.eluniversal.com/nacional-y-politica/140618/court-bans-deputy-maria-corina-machado-from-leaving-venezuela)
German national killed
in shooting in Caracas
Two people were reported dead at the doors of
EUROBUILDING hotel in Caracas. A German national was reported to have come out
of an armored vehicle when the shooting between his bodyguards and a group of
criminals started. The foreigner, identified as Cristophorns Wihem Deuts
Keuter, ended dead. The other victim was an at large criminal who allegedly attempted
to rob Keuter and ended up confronting several bodyguards who were at the
parking lot. President Maduro referred to the killers as "hired assassins". (El Universal, http://www.eluniversal.com/nacional-y-politica/140618/german-national-killed-in-shooting-in-caracas)
