International
Venezuela to slash six zeroes from currency
AFP
Venezuela will slash six zeroes off its inflation-battered currency the bolivar to make it easier to use, the central bank said on Thursday.
The change will take effect on October 1 with the issuance of new currency notes, called the digital bolivar.
“All monetary amounts expressed in national currency will be divided by one million,” the central bank of President Nicolas Maduro’s beleaguered leftist government said.
It said the goal of the change is to “facilitate” the use of the bolivar.
It is the third time in 13 years that Venezuela — suffering the worst economic crisis in its modern era — has used such a measure.
In August 2018, the government lopped five zeros off its bank notes, having taken off three in 2008.
In 2018, the government replaced the ironically named strong bolivar with the sovereign bolivar.
The once-wealthy oil producer is enduring its fourth year of hyperinflation and its eighth year of recession.
From January through to May prices rose 265 percent.
Inflation was almost 3,000 percent in 2020 and more than 9,500 percent the year before, according to central bank figures.
“It was an expected decision,” economist Cesar Aristimuno, director of Aristimuno Herrera & Associates, told AFP.
“By itself it was necessary … the billing and accounting processes for companies were already practically impossible.”
People had even resorted to using a shorthand for prices, saying “thousands” instead of “millions.”
There is such a shortage of bolivars that long queues are a regular sight outside banks.
Transactions made in the local currency are usually done by card payment or bank transfer rather than in cash.
Inflation is so bad that the everyday economy now works mainly in dollars, with many stores listing prices in the US currency.
Back in May the government tripled the minimum monthly wage but the new amount was still not even enough to buy a kilogram of meat.
However, Aristimuno warned that while “convenient” this measure will not transform Venezuela’s battered economy.
“We cannot hope for economic miracles from this decision, taking into account that … it comes without any underlying economic announcements” that could reduce inflation or boost GDP.
The Maduro government is under international sanctions championed by the United States, which is pushing for his ouster and does not recognize him as the country’s legitimate president.
With the currency overhaul, the central bank will issue new notes with face values of five, 10, 20, 50 and 100 bolivars and a one-bolivar coin, Communications Minister Freddy Nanez said on Twitter.
International
Kristi Noem credits Trump for mass migrant deportations by mexican president
U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem claimed that Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum has deported “more than half a million” migrants due to pressure from former President Donald Trump.
During a cabinet meeting highlighting the “achievements” of Trump’s administration in its first 100 days, Noem asserted that under the Republican leader’s influence, “Mexico has finally come to the table” to negotiate on migration and fentanyl trafficking.
“The president of Mexico told me she has returned just over half a million people before they reached our border,” Noem stated, criticizing media reports that suggest the Biden administration deported more migrants than Trump’s.
“I wish those deportations were counted,” Noem added, “because those people never made it to our border—she sent them back because you made her.” She went on to thank Trump: “They never made it here because they got the message—because you were so aggressive.”
Noem has made controversial claims about Sheinbaum in the past, prompting the Mexican leader to refute them.
On April 1, Sheinbaum responded to one such statement by declaring, “The president answers to only one authority, and that is the people of Mexico,” after Noem said on Fox News that she gave Sheinbaum “a list of things Trump would like to see” and that Mexico’s actions would determine whether Trump granted tariff relief.
International
Vatican releases special “Sede Vacante” stamps ahead of papal transition
he Vatican’s post offices and select collector shops began selling special edition stamps this week to mark the period between the death of Pope Francis and the election of his successor.
Known as “Sede Vacante” stamps, they feature an image used on official Vatican documents during the interregnum between popes — two crossed keys without the papal tiara. These stamps went on sale Monday and will remain valid for postal use only until the new pontiff appears at the window overlooking St. Peter’s Square.
Until then, they can be used to send letters, postcards, and parcels. “Once the new pope is elected, the stamps lose their postal validity, but their collectible value rises,” said Francesco Santarossa, who runs a collectors’ shop across from St. Peter’s Square.
The Vatican has issued the stamps in four denominations: €1.25, €1.30, €2.45, and €3.20. Each is inscribed with “Città del Vaticano” and “Sede Vacante MMXXV” — Latin for “Vacant See 2025.”
International
Conclave to choose pope Francis’ successor could begin in early may
The conclave, which in the coming weeks must choose the successor to Pope Francis, will strictly follow a precise protocol refined over centuries.
The 135 cardinal electors, all under the age of 80, will cast their votes four times a day — except on the first day — until one candidate secures a two-thirds majority. The result will be announced to the world through the burning of the ballots with a chemical that produces the eagerly awaited white smoke, accompanied by the traditional cry of “Habemus Papam.”
The start date for the conclave could be announced today, as the cardinals are set to hold their fifth meeting since the pope’s passing. Luxembourg Cardinal Jean-Claude Hollerich suggested it could begin on May 5 or 6, following the traditional nine days of mourning. According to German Cardinal Reinhard Marx, the conclave could last only “a few days.”
Although the late Argentine pontiff appointed the majority of the cardinal electors, this does not necessarily ensure the selection of a like-minded successor. Francis’ leadership style differed significantly from that of his predecessor, Benedict XVI, a German theologian who was less fond of large public gatherings. It also marked a contrast with the popular Polish pope, John Paul II.
The Argentine Jesuit’s reformist papacy drew strong criticism from more conservative sectors of the Church, who are hoping for a doctrinally focused shift. His tenure was marked by efforts to combat clerical sexual abuse, elevate the role of women and laypeople, and advocate for the poor and migrants, among other causes.
Kristi Noem credits Trump for mass migrant deportations by mexican president
Vatican releases special “Sede Vacante” stamps ahead of papal transition
Conclave to choose pope Francis’ successor could begin in early may
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