CARACAS, Venezuela — As perishable foodstuffs rotted on cargo ships that had waited three weeks to unload at Venezuela’s largest port, unsettled consumers this week found shelves at Caracas’ main downtown market devoid of rice, cooking oil, sugar and other items.
Widespread scarcities and chaos at the nation’s main ports, including Puerto Cabello, are just some of the problems Vice President Nicolas Maduro will face as he takes the reins of power in the absence of President Hugo Chavez..........
....Alejandro Grisanti, head of Latin America research at Barclays in New York, said sharp spending cuts were necessary after an “unsustainable” 2012 budget deficit inflated by Chavez’s election year giveaways, including apartments and appliances, that helped him to a resounding reelection victory in October......
Maduro may also have to reconsider Chavez’s imposition of price controls, which won the socialist regime the support of poor voters by artificially depressing the prices of basic food items — if consumers can find them.
Price controls have also caused the shriveling of Venezuela’s domestic industries because local producers can’t afford to sell goods at the mandated low prices, according to Ismael Perez, director of the Conindustria, the nation’s leading business association of manufacturers.
Venezuela’s manufacturing sector has lost 150,000 jobs over the last decade, and the country must now import products such as sugar, rice, coffee, milk and beef, all of which Venezuela was self-sufficient in before Chavez took power.
With domestic production shrinking, the country has had to step up imports just to feed its population. ......
......In Chavez’s absence, the government continues to blame manufacturers for the shortages. Just this week, it seized products and facilities owned by PepsiCo Inc. and food conglomerate Polar, accusing the latter of hoarding........
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“BOGOTA, Colombia — Annual inflation in Venezuela hit 49.4 percent in September, up from 18 percent a year ago, and basic goods became harder to find, the Central Bank reported Thursday.
The soaring consumer price index gives Venezuela the highest inflation in the hemisphere.
In September alone, inflation spiked 4.4 percent, driven by agricultural goods, transportation, education expenses and a 19.3 percent hike in electricity prices, the government said.
The new figures are ammunition for an opposition that is trying to turn December’s municipal election into a referendum on the six-month administration of President Nicolás Maduro. Inflation is a pocketbook issue as it saps consumers’ purchasing power.
The Central Bank also reported that the “scarcity index,” which measures the availability of basic goods, hit 21.2 percent in September versus 13.6 percent a year ago. The bank said that excluding auto parts, corn oil and sunflower oil, the scarcity index would be at 15.3 percent.
Maduro has blamed rising prices and chronic shortages on hoarding, speculation and an “economic war” waged by his rivals. The government raised minimum wage 20 percent in May and 10 percent in September. Wages are going up an additional 10 percent next month. But earlier this week, Maduro asked parliament for the right to rule by decree for 12 months to fight the economic battle and squash corruption. The National Assembly is expected to vote on the measure in coming weeks.....”
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