Telefonica Said to Plan for Another Venezuela Devaluation

Telefonica SA plans to boost spending in Venezuela to avoid sitting on cash that may lose a third of its value as speculation mounts that the government may devalue the bolivar for a second time this year, according to a person familiar with the matter.

The Spanish phone company’s headquarters in Madrid will be asked this week to sign off on additional spending of 1.3 billion bolivars ($207 million) this year on its mobile-phone network in Venezuela, said the person, asking not to be identified because the proposal is confidential. Telefonica earlier this year approved a 78 percent increase in its budget to 3.9 billion bolivars with an additional 600 million bolivars earmarked for acquiring high-speed wireless spectrum.