Blog #5 Cuba cuts sugar price subsidies

            On February 12^th Cuba cut sugar price subsidies in an attempt to encourage private enterprise.  President Raul Castro is making a large effort to reduce the state’s role in the economy, as well as to cut costs and expenses of the government in these poor economic times.  At the current time Cubans can only buy sugar from state owned facilities, not local markets or stores.  With this new cut in the subsidies Cuban will still be able to but limited quantities of sugar at a subsidized rate with their ration books.  The state newspaper Juventud Rebelde said that sugar would “gradually” be freed from state control and sold in shops and supermarkets, where it will be sold but at a much higher price.  The Cuban government has also announced the price of imported rice is to go up by about 40%.  The phasing out of subsidies will dramatically reduce costs for the Cuban government and reduce the “total control” the government has over the economy.  This is significant news because Cuba has always closely regulated trade and especially the production and distribution of sugar.  This is just the first step of many in Cuba’s effort to have less regulations and restriction on the economy, and possible in society.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-latin-america-12441487