Critics say Venezuela’s radical plan to issue new banknotes is likely to make things even worse
Caracas — Beleaguered Venezuelans braced on Monday for the rollout of President Nicolas Maduro’s radical new plan to curb the spiralling hyperinflation that has thrown their oil-rich, cash-poor nation into turmoil. Caracas is issuing new banknotes after lopping five zeroes off the crippled bolivar, casting a pall of uncertainty over businesses and consumers across the country. "There will be a lot of confusion in the next few days, for consumers and the private sector," said the director of the Ecoanalitica consultancy, Asdrubal Oliveros. "It’s a chaotic scenario." Other measures — revealed by Maduro in a speech to the nation late on Friday — include a massive minimum wage increase, the fifth so far in 2018. As it stands, the monthly minimum wage — devastated by inflation and the aggressive devaluation of the bolivar — is still not enough to buy 1kg of meat. The embattled Maduro, a former bus driver and union leader, said the country needed to show "fiscal discipline" and stop the e...
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