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Conditions exist for peso recovery Investment banker Bear Stearns published a Sovereign Latin America Update, which brings optimistic tidings for the ailing Dominican peso and the economy in general. The report estimates that the peso has recovered 5% of its value in the past month, and that the economy may have already hit its lowest point, setting the scene for a possible upturn. The US-based institution awards the DR a Ba2/B+ rating, and attributes the peso’s recent upward trend to the imminent IMF agreement, the restructuring of troubled banks Baninter, Bancrédito, and Mercantil; US$1-billion CD issuance to soak up excess peso liquidity; increased tourism flows; robust remittances; higher exports and lower imports. The report says that tourism for the first half of the year has increased 21% compared to the same period last year, translating to 1.7 million foreign tourists. Tourist revenues are cited as having expanded by more than 18%, from US$1.36 billion in the first half of 2002 to US$1.61 billion for the same period in 2003. Remittances were up 2.8%, to US$1.08 billion from US$1.05 billion in the first half of 2002. Bear Stearns says that remittances have become a key contributor to the country’s external accounts and represented a vital source of foreign exchange during the crisis period. Likewise, exports grew by 8.6% for the first half of 2003 to US$2.8 billion. Free zone exports were up 5.7% and non-free zone exports 21.7%, boosted by the weaker peso. Imports contracted 17.2% during the same period, causing the merchandise trade deficit for the first half year to fall to US$1.2 billion for the first half of 2003 from US$1.9 billion for the same period in 2002. Bear Stearns report (PDF): http://dr1.com/news/2003/DR_Sov Update_082103.pdf |
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Dollar rate rise “political” The Listín Diario’s lead story quotes Industry and Commerce Minister Sonia Guzmán describing the recent rise in the dollar exchange rate as “disproportionate” and “politically motivated.” Guzmán accused political and business interests hostile to the government of manipulating the exchange market at the expense of all sectors of Dominican society, with the aim of influencing the outcome of the 2004 presidential election. “The overvaluation of the dollar is distorting everything in the economy, including the price of fuel,” claimed the minister. She called on Dominicans to resist speculation on the currency, for the common good. After a month of recovery, the dollar-peso rate has begun to rise again, yesterday standing at RD$35 to US$1. |
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Trinidad bank + Mercantil bank The Republic Bank of Trinidad & Tobago has showed an interest in purchasing shares of the Banco Mercantil of the Dominican Republic. According to a report in Hoy newspaper, the Central Bank is also participating in the negotiations. Hoy reports that the Central Bank has intervened to ensure that the Mercantil group adopts a more flexible position regarding the bank’s share price and the level of foreign participation. Hoy explains that the Republic Bank of Trinidad & Tobago would be given 60 to 90 days to carry out due diligence following the signing of a memorandum of understanding and to evaluate in depth the statements presented by Mercantil, especially in regards to their loans portfolio. |
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Same rights for all Ana Mitila Lora writes today in the Listín Diario on the case of 33-year-old Tirso Miguel Castillo Guzman, arrested by police and accused of robbing four bank branches of Santo Domingo. To launch the thief’s bountiful spree, RD$253,000 was taken from the Asociación Nacional de Ahorros y Prestamos on 7 January. On 22 May, a branch of the BHD bank was relieved of RD$422,000. On 2 June, the bandit made off with RD$296,000 from the Banco Popular and on 28 July, a branch of the Banco del Progreso was hit for RD$374,000. Lora says that with the money stolen, the robber was able to spend a vacation in Cuba, rent a villa in Bávaro with his family and purchase a Toyota. She advises the political parties, church, some judges, the attorney general, the district attorney and Central Bank to show their solidarity and human sensibility by sending this citizen to a suite in the Abreu Clinic, his residence or at least pull some strings so that he can benefit from a KDK fan, and that his safety not be in danger. “The Constitution says that we are all equal under the law,” she concludes. |
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Viyella urges caution in power crisis handling CONEP president Elena Viyella de Paliza is urging the authorities to exercise caution in tackling the power sector crisis. This statement comes in reaction to yesterday’s report that Central Bank Governor José Lois Malkum was advocating drastic measures, including repossession of the power distribution companies, to solve the acute problems in the electrical sector. In Viyella’s opinion, the sector’s deterioration is a result of the peso devaluation and the rising cost of oil. Speaking at a seminar on the subject of the electricity sector, she warned against making any hasty decisions. “We have to understand now which alternatives lie ahead of us… Whatever is to be done should be carried out with a great deal of thought and lengthy evaluation, so that we make a decision to solve the problem that has plagued our country for thirty years. We must not be hasty,” she said. Other business leaders speaking at the seminar said that urgent action was required. José Manuel Armenteros of the Santo Domingo Chamber of Commerce and Production proposed the formulation of a strategic plan. Lisandro Macarulla of the Dominican Industrialists’ Association (AIRD) said that the effects of the crisis on the business sector were “alarming” and posed a real challenge for the country. |
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European finance for power network European Union ambassador to the Dominican Republic Miguel Amado has said that the European Investment Bank is willing to invest in the power distribution network. The idea would be to invest US$80 million in power lines that would supply the northern region of the country from generating stations in the south, with the aim of ending the severe electric supply problems endured by the population. Northern power distribution company Edenorte cannot keep up with demand, said Amado, and this is why he is proposing that the Investment Bank step in. The ambassador stressed that all sectors of society, including the government, should pay for electricity, and he offered European Union technical assistance to train power generation industry workers. Power Superintendent George Reinoso and Union Fenosa vice-president Ignacio de Alvaro welcomed the proposal, which they said presented a real solution to the power supply problems in the north of the country |
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Time for critical self-examination Hoy newspaper’s editorial deals with the harsh words of European Union Ambassador Miguel Amado directed at the President in a speech made earlier this week. The writer says that many Dominicans, in a knee-jerk reaction, may have gone on the defensive, inspiring nationalism and anger for those who feel they have the right to tell small nations what to do. The columnist believes, however, that Amado’s attack on corruption and government inaction was motivated by a genuine desire to help. “It is probable, in light of the facts, that this diplomat may have sensed that the fight against corruption is little more than rhetoric,” says the viewpoint, in reference to recent corruption cases and Saturday’s events in Congress. “We should not console ourselves with euphemisms that worse things happen in other countries,” adds the writer. Although Amado’s words may have been painful, concludes the editorial, “We must take heed, examine ourselves and take action to correct all the things that are out of order.” El Caribe’s main editorial also recognizes Amado’s credentials for constructive criticism, although it acknowledges that he could be accused of using undiplomatic language and interference in another country’s affairs. European Union ambassador Miguel Amado’s comments did not go down well in certain government circles. Finance Minister Rafael Calderón advised Amado to “seek official information on procedures” before making comments of that sort. Calderón, who managed the international cooperation budget in his former post as technical secretary to the Presidency, remarked that he did not believe there was “any degree of corruption in the funds the government receives from the European Union.” Attorney General Victor Céspedes Martínez defined Amado’s comments about “worrying signs” of corruption as “unfounded”, and he countered that the country had taken great strides in the fight against corruption in recent years, with 126 cases on the books, something that no other country has achieved. The president of Chamber of Deputies, Alfredo Pacheco, and the Senate head, Jésus Vásquez Martínez, categorically rejected Amado’s comments, saying that the reform and modernization programs underway were being given high priority. In contrast, PRD Senator Ramón Alburquerque said that Amado’s attack on corruption did not go far enough. Milagros Ortiz Bosch also accepted that Amado had been “partly correct” in his comments, and agreed that the fight against corruption needed to be sped up. JCE (Central Electoral Board) president Luis Arias conceded that the events in the lower house of Congress last Saturday, which were broadcast around the world, were not good for the country’s image. |
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PRD hopeful rejects Tolentino’s suggestion One of the PRD presidential pre-candidates, Ramón Alburquerque, has rejected former Foreign Minister Hugo Tolentino Dipp’s proposal that the eight contestants select the strongest amongst them to run against Hipólito Mejía in the party’s primary election. Alburquerque likened Tolentino’s position on the issue to Mejía’s. He also criticized the President for surrounding himself with military figures for his pre-presidential campaign: “It is no more than we expected, there is nothing new, he is putting army officers in politics, there’s the army chief, the police chief, and for all I know, most of his assistants are military personnel dressed in civilian clothing.” |
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Estrella will expel PRSC members accepting appointments The PRSC’s executive committee has ruled that party members who accept political appointments from the PRD government will be expelled. The party’s official presidential candidate, Eduardo Estrella, said that such political appointments would be incompatible with their role as opposition party, and that their priority was to seek as many votes as possible for next year’s presidential election. Estrella also criticized the government for “wanting to live like the rich, although we are a poor country.” Johnny Jones, the political secretary for the party now says that PRSC members would only accept appointments once Eduardo Estrella wins the Presidency in 2004. Eligio Jáquez of the PPH (Proyecto Presidencial Hipólito, internal PRD campaign for the President’s re-election) had said that the PRSC would be compensated for losing control of the Chamber of Deputies with political appointments. El Caribe reported yesterday that as well as Johnny Jones’s INDRHI directorship, the PRSC was seeking the post of Foreign Minister for Joaquín Ricardo and Armed Forces Minister for Luis Pérez Bello. PRSC party president Rafael Bello Andino vehemently denied that he was considering a appointment, negating that he had been offered any such post in the first place. “The Reformist Party must have its own line and path, in the same way Joaquín Balaguer always did…We should go our own way, with our own identity,” said Bello Andino, who denied reports of recent meetings with President Mejía. |
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New consul general in NY President Hipólito Mejía appointed José Rafael (Pacheco) Pimentel Moreno as the new consul general in New York City. Decree 791-03 replaces Francisco Antonio Peña Guaba, who had been at the post for a year. President Mejía recently replaced several consuls, including the consul general in Miami, in whose place he appointed his brother-in-law, Rafael Gómez. |
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RD$12 million for anti-poverty projects The Presidential anti-poverty program reports it has allocated a sum of RD$12 million to 70 new projects aimed at improving the lives of thousands of families in the poorest areas of the capital and around the country. In eastern and northern Santo Domingo, 16 such projects are currently underway and involve improving sanitation systems, construction of steps and paving of alleyways in marginal neighborhoods, and rainwater filtration and collection systems. In rural areas the undertakings include construction and repair of sporting and cultural facilities, improved electricity provision, support for small business enterprises, construction of sanitation and water supply systems and repairs to housing. |
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RD$100 million in village furnishings It’s up to President Hipólito Mejía to decide on the allocation of the TVs, computers, furniture, refrigerators and furnishings of the Pan Am Games’ athletes’ village. The articles are practically new as they were only used for three weeks during the staging of the Games. Colonel Amilcar Fernandez made the announcement that the decision regarding who would get which of the RD$100-million worth of items was up to President Mejía. |
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Turbí keeps his promise The “2 de Mayo” prison in the northern city of Moca was the unconventional setting for an awards ceremony yesterday. Dozens of Dominican athletes, fresh from their victories in the Pan American Games, assembled at the jail to receive a total of RD$4 million from imprisoned businessman Tony Turbí, accused of the murder of a rival in his home city of Santiago. The ceremony was broadcast live on Freddy Beras Goico’s Channel 9 TV show and was attended by local dignitaries and members of Turbí’s family, as well as a large press contingent. Each gold medalist received RD$300,000, silver medalists RD$50,000 and bronze medalists RD$20,000. Not all medalists showed to receive the awards. |
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Army man arrested for shooting bystander El Caribe reports that police arrested a member of the National Army after relatives and friends of Carlos Eusebio Reyes, the 23-year-old body shop worker killed in El Tamarindo on Tuesday, said he was guilty of the act. Reyes was an innocent bystander during violent confrontations taking place in the slum area, which ended in the destruction of an OMSA bus, three minibuses and five cars. According to police spokesman Colonel Ramón Francisco Rodriguez Sánchez, the army serviceman had been assigned to the Metropolitan Transport Authority (AMET) that day, explaining why he was carrying a gun, as AMET officers are usually unarmed. Rodriguez Sánchez said the accused was being detained and that the homicide division would offer explanations shortly on their investigation. The accused agent was identified by relatives and friends as Rodriguez Carrasco. |
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New tropical depression The ninth tropical depression in this year’s hurricane season has formed in the eastern Caribbean, located some 200 kms to the south of the Dominican Republic. A tropical storm warning is in effect for the entire South Coast of the Dominican Republic, from Saona Island to the southwestern border with Haiti. The storm track shows it touching land entering by way of Barahona to exit through Haiti as it makes its way to Florida within the next 24 hours. The depression is moving at a speed of 19 kms per hour. As of 2 pm it was located at 16.5N and 69.4W and is keeping a WNW track. The Atlantic hurricane season began on 1 June and lasts until 30 November. This year 14 tropical storms and eight hurricanes are expected. August and September are the peak hurricane season months for the Dominican Republic. For more on storms in the area, see http://www.dr1.com/weather/hurricanes.shtml |
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