Business & Economy

Cuban scientists hope to successfully produce in around three years a potato seed created in the country, with which it would save some 15 million dollars in imports, reported IPS. Several research centers are working towards this aim, among them the National Institute of Tropical Tubers and the Institute of Plant Biotechnology of the central province of Villa Clara.

Cuban authorities hope to expand in 2010 its charcoal exports to Europe based on marabú, a thorny shrub that propagates rapidly and that has become one of the principal obstacles for national agriculture, reported IPS. About a third of the arable land in Cuba is covered in marabú.

Cuba and Venezuela carried out the first transaction with the “Sucre”, a ledger book currency to be used for exchanges between members of the Bolivarian Alternative for the Americas (ALBA). One Sucre is equivalent to 1.25 US Dollars.

A Cuban government technical commission headed by Minister of Informatics and Communication Ramiro Valdes will provide advice to Venezuela to face the energy crisis the South American nation is going through. Cuba experienced similar situations that weighed down its economy in the early 1990s and later in 2004.

In 2009 emigrants were the second most important source of tourists for Cuba, with the arrival of 296,000 persons born in the country but residing abroad. Canada continues being the most important tourist market for Cuba, with more than 914,000 visitors, followed by Great Britain and Spain.

A ledger book currency called the SUCRE took effect Wednesday among the countries belonging to the Bolivarian Alternative for the Americas (ALBA) and has a value of US $1.25, announced Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez.

Travel related businesses from the US will meet March 24-26 in Cancun, Mexico with Cuban tourism ministry officials to plot a hypothetical situation where the US government rescinds its travel ban to the Caribbean nation.

The Tourism Office and the Cuban embassy in France will participate in the Dijon International Fair, dedicated this year to the island, to be held January 29-31, announced Gilberto López, representative of the Ministry of Tourism. The Caribbean country will also be the guest of honour at the Alencon Fair in Normandy, February 24-March 1.

The huge Houston Port Authority has added a weekly shipping line to Cuba in a move that could bring considerable business if the US embargo on the Caribbean island is ever dropped.