2004 – Page 42

President Leonel Fernandez announced the country would be borrowing US$160 million from Brazil to build the northwestern aqueduct that has been on the government agenda for the past decade. Most of the money would fund the pipeline system for the aqueduct. The aqueduct construction will take three years from the scheduled start date in mid-2005. …

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President Leonel Fernandez brought the Haitian political, economic and social crisis to the Group of Rio Summit, where he was backed by the event’s host President Luiz Inacio “Lula” da Silva. In the final declaration of the 18th Summit of the Group of Rio, the need for increased international community support to the difficult situation …

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Roberto Rodriguez Marchena, the spokesperson for the Fernandez administration, announced on Friday that the government would strive to reduce the information forthcoming from government in order not to cause undue concern to Dominican families. Rodriguez Marchena said that a study showed that Dominicans are fed up with the presence of government officers in their homes, …

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The Central Bank reports that, for the first time in the past 22 months, there is no need to print money without sufficient reserves. According to El Caribe newspaper, the printing machine of the so-called “inorganicos” has been shut down. On 1 November, the number of certificates of deposits represented RD$2.72 billion more than the …

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The implementation of Tax Reform Law 288-04, which upped the ITBIS sales tax from 12% to 16% and imposed increased luxury taxes (Impuesto Selectivo al Consumo), left its mark on the inflation rate in October. The Central Bank reported that inflation rose 1.35% for the month, with accumulated inflation for the first 10 months of …

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Business leader Celso Marranzini told Hoy newspaper that he is opposed to mandatory wage increases for businesses. He said that the National Salaries Commission (CNS) should stick to legislating the minimum wage, not wages in general. As reported, he said that it is now up to the Ministry of Labor to judge the merits of …

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The Ministry of Industry & Commerce announced a decline of RD$4.40 in the price of premium and regular gasoline and RD$7.10 for a gallon of diesel. Resolution 111 establishes that a gallon of premium gasoline would cost RD$99.40 as of Saturday, 6 November, and regular gasoline RD$90.10 and diesel RD$69.60. Prices will remain in effect …

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The Dominican Republic’s currency dipped below the 8 September rate of RD$30.64 and a US dollar was being bought for less than RD$30 for the first time over the weekend. According to Freddy Ortiz, the president of the Association of Remittance Companies, the flow of foreign currency has surpassed the economy’s capacity to purchase dollars …

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Italy’s minister of environment, Altero Metteoli, visited the Dominican Republic last week to offer his nation’s assistance in local environmental matters. During his stay, he met with the Dominican ministers of culture, tourism and environment.

Thirteen-year-od Javier Rodriguez Liriano was rescued in a joint effort by Dominican authorities and the United Nations military forces in Haiti after being kidnapped in a case of mistaken identity. The military delivered the boy to the Dominican consulate in Ouanaminthe, where Dominican Consul Andres Bocio Fortuna and Dajabon’s Governor Sonia Mateo received him. Following …

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