Cuba News articles from February 2001

Cuba News archives from February 2001

Russian demand to be part of settlement hits effort to reach debt accord with Paris Club.(Brief Article)
February 1, 2001... HAVANA -- A decision by Russia to insist that it be included in any debt restructuring deal between Cuba and the Paris Club has western creditors increasingly pessimistic they will reach a deal with the indebted island any time soon. Cuba...

Proposed regulations to allow food sales to Cuba without licensing could face Bush opposition.(George Bush, President of the United States)(Brief Article)
February 1, 2001... WASHINGTON -- The Commerce Department has drafted regulations that would allow US exporters to sell food to Cuba without prior approval of the deals. Department sources say proposed regulations governing the sale of food and agricultural...

Farm state legislators push for greater opening to Cuba despite longer odds.(embargo makes trade with the island very difficult)(Brief Article)
February 1, 2001... WASHINGTON -- Having fallen short last year of a goal of removing all restrictions on the sale of agricultural products to Cuba, farm state senators from both sides of the aisle have introduced new legislation aimed at further weakening the...

Helms-Burton money prompted harsh treatment of Czechs.(Cuba jails legislators after metting with dissidents)(Brief Article)
February 1, 2001... WASHINGTON -- There was much more behind the Cuba government's jailing of two Czech legislators than the meeting with dissidents the men were accused of. Havana jailed former Czech finance minister Ivan Pilip and Jan Bubenik, a student...

Sugar harvest headed for poor year.(Cuba)(Brief Article)
February 1, 2001... HAVANA -- Sugar Minister Ulises Rosales del Toro urged industry leaders not to lose hope that they could meet 2001 production plans, after rains twice paralyzed harvesting and milling in January. The bad month followed the lowest December...

Payment dispute could reduce Cuban food imports from France.(wheat imports could drop significantly)(Abstract)
February 1, 2001... HAVANA -- Cuban wheat purchases from France could fall by a third compared to last year's level as talks for the renewal of the wheat-for-sugar barter deal stumbled as a result of a considerable delay in payments owed by the Cuban government to...

Cattle sector remains on wobbly legs as government refuses to reform industry.(Cuba)
February 1, 2001... Even as Cuba tries to diversify its economy into tourism, biotechnology and other areas, it continues to be unable to rescue one of the oldest industries on the island -- cattle ranching. Between the fifteenth and eighteenth centuries, the...

World Food Organization planning major effort in Cuba.(Brief Article)
February 1, 2001... HAVANA -- Despite government claims that the agriculture sector is starting to revive, the World Food Program has announced it plans to expand its nutrition program in eastern Cuba. The organization is expected to approve a request from the...

Havana promoting medical treatment as new business opportunity.(Cuba)(Brief Article)
February 1, 2001... HAVANA -- Cuban state health care corporation Servimed has begun an aggressive marketing effort to sell its services in Latin America and other markets. A subsidiary of Cubanacan, a tourism conglomerate owned by the armed forces, Servimed...

Facilities for the not-as-sick.(health services and spa treatments in Cuba)(Brief Article)
February 1, 2001... Servimed also has a series of facilities that are more akin to spas than medical centers. Most offer treatment for weight-loss or stress-reduction at comfortable campuses that offer decent service, good food and a relaxing atmosphere. * El...

Rising oil output shielded economy from higher oil prices.(production management and developments within petroleum and gas industries in Cuba)(Brief Article)
February 1, 2001... HAVANA -- The Cuban government named energy as last year's economic sector of the year, and for good reason. Increased oil and gas production, and improved energy efficiency appear to have boosted the sector into position as the country's...

Tourist arrivals continue to grow but growth in income slows.(decreased profits from tourism in Cuba)(Brief Article)
February 1, 2001... HAVANA -- The number of tourists visiting Cuba last year continued to rise, but the growth in profits slowed considerably. Cuba hosted 1.774 million tourists in 2000, well below the 2 million arrivals planned at the beginning of the year...

Cuban companies having trouble paying bills to Panamanian suppliers.(Brief Article)
February 1, 2001... PANAMA CITY -- Cuban companies and government agencies have run up an estimated $40 million in debts with Panamanian companies in the Colon Free Trade Zone, one of the most important routes Cuba uses for circumventing US trade restrictions....

CubaNews Products & Services.(Brief Article)
February 1, 2001... Business Guide to Cuba The Business Guide to Cuba is the most comprehensive research report on Cuban business and politics available. With more than 300 pages of exclusive information, data and maps on all of the productive sectors of the...

COMMODITY EXPORT MARKETS.(Cuba, economic situation)(Brief Article)
February 1, 2001... The recent announcement that wheat imports from France, Cuba's largest provider of the cereals, could be cut in a half as result of delays in payments owned by the Cuban government (see story on page 5) is worrisome for the island and...

Cuban flower producers could be players in the United States.(Brief Article)
February 1, 2001... HAVANA -- As Valentines Day approaches, another year passes in which Cuba's flower producers, once major suppliers of cut flowers to the United States, are shut out of the market. Growers near Havana could reach US markets quickly and...

Fidelismo.(brief notes on Cuban leader Fidel Castro)(Brief Article)
February 1, 2001... A monthly report on Cubas maximum leader Longest Meeting A six-hour session Feb. 3 with Czech Senate President Petr Pithart to discuss the impasse over Cuba's arrest of two Czech legislators for allegedly meeting with and funding the...

RUMOR OF THE DAY.(no more business consultants on Cuba)(Brief Article)
February 1, 2001... HAVANA -- The Cuban government about six months ago began a program to lessen the influence of foreign consultants, particularly US based business-development consultants. The government had become concerned that these consultants were making...