Business leaders concerned of delay in currency controls

www.vheadline.com Posted: Friday, March 07, 2003 By: Robert Rudnick

Venezuelan Federation of Chambers of Commerce & Industry (Fedecamaras) vice president Albis Munoz has criticized the government for taking so long to implement its currency controls, insisting that the longer the measures are delayed the more businesses will be forced into bankruptcy. 

The Currency Administration Commission (Cadivi) had been due to publish a list of approved products the would be seen as essential in terms of dollar applications on its website this Wednesday, but so far the list has not been released.

"The people who are handling this clearly don't have the technical ability to do it," Munoz said of the Cadivi board.

"We are very worried because we've just come out of a civic strike which had already restricted inventories, and now we are experiencing a foreign exchange freeze that has lasted 45 days."