Venezuela to Pump More Dollars Into Economy, Cut Tax on Oil
This article is for subscribers only.
Venezuela will channel more resources from its oil exports to the central bank this year as it seeks to alleviate a shortage of dollars that has crimped imports, Oil Minister Rafael Ramirez said today.
The government plans to reduce levies on the oil industry by changing rules on the so-called windfall tax that will now only be triggered when crude trades above $80 a barrel, instead of $70 barrel. The move will reduce funding to President Hugo Chavez’s off-budget development fund known as Fonden and pump more dollars into the central bank, Ramirez said. The changes need to be approved by Congress.