Washington — The political and economic crisis in Venezuela is costing US companies dearly, as General Motors (GM) can attest to following the unexpected nationalisation of its plant there. The vehicle maker shut down its operations in Venezuela and laid off 2,700 workers after the government last Wednesday seized the plant, which had been idle because of the chaotic market environment. The group had been operating in the South American country for 69 years. GM is not the only US business to be walloped by Venezuela’s crisis. Kimberly-Clark, a personal-care paper group, had its factory taken over in July 2016 and posted a charge of $153m to deconsolidate its Venezuela operations. Biscuit maker Mondelez — behind the Oreo brand — also took a one-time charge of $778m to reconfigure its Venezuela operations as an investment in its accounts, to prevent them dragging the group’s earnings down. Although Mondelez products still sell in Venezuela, it is unable to track sales. Same story for ...
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