Pakistanis angry over detentions in Times Sq. case Monday, May 24, 2010
ISLAMABAD – Relatives of three men detained by Pakistan for alleged links to the suspect in the attempted Times Square bombing say the men are innocent.
They
AFP - Thursday, August 6TAIPEI (AFP) - - Taiwan's Beijing-friendly government on Wednesday denied boycotting an Australian film festival amid a row over the e
BERLIN (Reuters) - Chancellor Angela Merkel suffered a double blow on Thursday as a senior party ally in east German
Minister seeks closure of anti-Berlusconi websites Wednesday, December 16, 2009
ROME (AFP) - – The Italian government moved Tuesday to close down Internet sites encouraging further violence against Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi, who
By ELAINE KURTENBACH,AP Business Writer AP - Wednesday, March 18SHANGHAI - Asia's stock market rally seemed to be running out of steam Wednesday, despite an
My Profile
Top News
Reuters top ten news stories delivered to your inbox each day.
Subscribe
You are here:
Home
>
News
>
International
>
Article
Home
Business & Finance
News
U.S.
Politics
International
Technology
Entertainment
Sports
Lifestyle
Oddly Enough
Health
Science
Special Coverage
Video
Pictures
Your View
The Great Debate
Blogs
Weather
Reader Feedback
Do More With Reuters
RSS
Widgets
Mobile
Podcasts
Newsletters
Your View
Make Reuters My Homepage
Partner Services
CareerBuilder
Affiliate Network
Professional Products
Support (Customer Zone)
Reuters Media
Financial Products
About Thomson Reuters
Castro hints at more belt-tightening for Cuba
Sun Jul 26, 2009 1:09pm EDT
Email | Print |
Share
| Reprints | Single Page
[-]
Text
[+]
By Jeff Franks
HOLGUIN, Cuba (Reuters) - More belt-tightening may lie head for Cuba as President Raul Castro said on Sunday the government will look at making its second "adjustment to expenditures" this year due to the effects of the global financial crisis.
He said Cuba needs to press ahead with his program for getting more land into the hands of private farmers, calling the lone major reform of his administration a top national priority.
Castro spoke to thousands of red-clad Cubans in the eastern city of Holguin to mark the anniversary of the July 26, 1953 rebel attack on the Moncada military barracks in Santiago de Cuba that is considered the start of the Cuban revolution.
The revolution ended January 1, 1959 when dictator Fulgencio Batista fled the country and rebel leader Fidel Castro took power.
Raul Castro said Cuban ministers will meet on Tuesday to consider revising spending plans for the rest of the year because "of the effects of the world economic crisis on our economy."
In particular, he said there has been a "significant reduction in export income and additional restrictions to access external financing sources."
A recent government report said imports are expected to plummet 22.2 percent, or some $3.4 billion in 2009, while exports will decline by $500 million.
Three hurricanes that caused $10 billion in damage when they struck the communist-led island last year have added to woes caused by the global crisis.
BELT-TIGHTENING MEASURES
In response, the cash-short government has taken belt-tightening measures such as scheduled blackouts to save energy, selected factory shutdowns, public transport reductions, spending cuts and the freezing of foreign business bank accounts.
The latter has been partially rescinded after the account holders threatened to stop trading with Cuba, which depends heavily on imports of food and many other items.
The worsening situation has frustrated many Cubans who hoped Castro would reform Cuba's economy after taking over from Fidel Castro last year and quickly decreeing that Cubans could buy cell phones and computers and use previously off-limit tourist hotels.
But his only major reform so far has been in agriculture, where he launched a program to let private farmers cultivate unused state land.
He said that of 110,000 applications for land, 82,000 have been granted. More needs to be done to advance the land plan so Cuba can increase food production and cut import costs, he said.
The island, 90 miles from the United States, imports about 60 percent of its food. Continued...
View article on single page
Share:
Del.icio.us
Digg
Mixx
Yahoo!
Facebook
LinkedIn
Next Article:
Kuwait financier facing U.S. fraud suit found dead
Also on Reuters
Obama looks to rebound from tough week
WITNESS: Bogus calls from Kuwaiti trader Braikan
Guinea pigs break Harry Potter U.S. box office spell
More International News
Clinton urges North Korea to return to talks
U.S. tries to spur Middle East peace talks
| Video
Pro-Zelaya border protest weakens in Honduras
| Video
Clinton says Iran's nuclear pursuit is "futile"
First results due Monday in Iraqi Kurd election
| Video
More International News...
Editor's Choice
Slideshow
A selection of our best photos from the past 24 hours. Slideshow
Most Popular on Reuters
Articles
Video
Both U.S. political parties offend "Joe the Plumber"
James Cameron talks tech, "Avatar" at Comic-Con
Obama looks to rebound from tough week
Pro-Zelaya border protest weakens in Honduras | Video
Iran vows to hit Israel's atomic sites if attacked: report
New U.S. film shows pranksters battling companies
Germany calls carbon tariffs "eco-imperialism"
Venezuela's Chavez blasts U.S., allies on Honduras
Naked girls plow fields for rain
WITNESS: Bogus late-night calls from Kuwaiti trader Braikan
Most Popular Articles RSS Feed
Video
Ferrari's Massa stable after crash
Zelaya back at Honduras border
U.S. pushes for peace with Syria
Brazil strikes deal with Paraguay
Wildfires ravage Spain.
French President hospitalised
Green car is wooing Wall Street
Iraq's Kurds head to the polls
Heatwave hits Greece
China deadly bridge collapse
Most Popular Videos RSS Feed
Reuters.com:
Help and Contact Us |
Advertise With Us |
Mobile |
Newsletters |
RSS |
Labs |
Archive |
Site Index |
Video Index
Thomson Reuters Corporate:
Copyright |
Disclaimer |
Privacy |
Professional Products |
Professional Products Support |
About Thomson Reuters |
Careers
International Editions:
Africa |
Arabic |
Argentina |
Brazil |
Canada |
China |
France |
Germany |
India |
Italy |
Japan |
Latin America |
Mexico |
Russia |
Spain |
United Kingdom |
United States
Thomson Reuters is the world's largest international multimedia news agency, providing investing news, world news, business news, technology news, headline news, small business news, news alerts, personal finance, stock market, and mutual funds information available on Reuters.com, video, mobile, and interactive television platforms. Thomson Reuters journalists are subject to an Editorial Handbook which requires fair presentation and disclosure of relevant interests.
NYSE and AMEX quotes delayed by at least 20 minutes. Nasdaq delayed by at least 15 minutes. For a complete list of exchanges and delays, please click here.