[NYTr] Venezuela's Anti-Inflatin Measures Paying Off

[All the News That Doesn't Fit]

VIO Venezuela Daily News Roundup - August 1, 2007.


[Anti-inflationary measures imposed by the Venezuelan government are
paying off, Bloomberg reports today.  Annual inflation is down 2
percentage points since June, reaching its lowest rate since last
December.   Tax cuts and price subsidies have also slowed a rise in
consumer prices, which have been driven up by rapid and sustained
economic growth.-VIO]

Bloomberg - August 1, 2007
http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=newsarchive&sid=a8LKMi9p.F4g


Venezuela Inflation Slows in July on Tax Reduction

By Guillermo Parra-Bernal

Venezuelan consumer prices rose last month at the slowest pace in four
months after the government lowered the value-added tax for the second
time since March.

Consumer prices, as measured by the benchmark consumer price index,
rose 0.5 percent in July, compared with increases of 1.8 percent in
June and 2.4 percent in July 2006. Annual inflation slowed to 17.2
percent from 19.4 percent in June. It's the slowest annual rate since
December last year.

President Hugo Chavez is using tax cuts and price subsidies to rein in
Latin America's highest inflation rate as the fastest economic
expansion in five decades propels consumer spending.

The gain was less than the 0.8 percent increase forecast in a Bloomberg
survey of eight economists. Core inflation in July was 0.7 percent,
slower than June's 1.9 percent.

The government cut the value-added tax rate to 9 percent last month
from 11 percent on March 1 to help ease a surge in consumer prices.