BUSINESS & ECONOMICS |
BUSINESS & ECONOMICS |
Monday, October 30, 2000 Online Edition 44 |
Air
cargo cost goes down 40% At
the recommendation of the Honduran Counsel of Private Enterprise (COHEP),
Serplisa Swissport, the new sub-contractors in charge of air cargo transport
in the Tegucigalpa and San Pedro Sula airports, reduced the price of air
cargo transportation by 40%. The
price went down from US$9.14 to US$5.48.
The company's manager explained while ocean transport costs just
US$2.5 a pound in comparasion it took enormous effort on their part to offer
such a good price and that it is not possible to lower it further. --La
Prensa Hondutel
to go up for bid again The
Minister of Finance, Gabriela Nuņez, announced Tuesday that a new process
of bidding for the National Telephone Company, HONDUTEL, will initiate in
the near future. According to
the Minister, several Chilean and U.S. companies have demonstrated interest
in acquiring the 51% the Honduran government is offering for sale.
She also stated that meetings between interested national parties,
such as the HONDUTEL Board of Directors, the Honduran Council for Private
Enterprise, and the National Telecommunications Commission and President
Flores have already begun. The
Minister said that the new process will be conducted in much the same manner
as the previous bid, since the privatization law was created towards this
end. She assured the public that although the all aspects of the
process will be revised, it should be easy to conduct legally.
--El Heraldo Honduras
will produce 900,000 kilos of Tilapia The
Ministry of Cattle Ranching and Agriculture together with the Chinese
Technical Mission (Taiwan) launched on October 25 an artificial breeding
program of tilapia fish with the objective of producing 900,000 kilos of
fillete to be sold nationally and internationally.
Another purpose of the program is to offer fishermen vialable
economic alternatives to traditional fishing methods as well knowledge
concerning improved reproduction techniques. --El Heraldo Government
has 18 years to pay off debt to Social Security Hospital The
Minister of Finance stated on Wednesday that according to an agreement
between the Government and the Social Security Hospital signed in 1991, the
former still has 18 years to pay of Lps. 124 million owed to the health
institution. In 1991, the
agreement was for 28 years and Lps.174 million, but due to the fact that the
I.H.S.S. is on the verge of financial collapse the Minister recently
transferred Lps. 50 million to the hospital. The Minister also said that she is also considering paying off more of the debt sooner than required as a means of stabilizing the hospitals economic situation. Apparently the debt was accrued by governments to prior to 1991.--El Heraldo
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Monday, October 23, 2000 Online Edition 43 |
European market closed to Honduran bananas According to a
representative of the Ministry of Economy, the European market is closed to
Honduran bananas. Vice Minister
Hernan Erazo said the government is currently negotiating with the European
Union to lower import tariffs so that Honduran produce would be more
competitive. He added that all
Latin American countries, including Honduras, are petitioning equal
treatment with regard to import tariffs since different rates put some
nations at a big disadvantage. - El
Heraldo
Judicial, political instability scaring off investment According to
Jesus Canahuati, president of the Honduran Maquila Association, judicial and
political instability over the last few months has put a rein on foreign
investment in Honduras. Canahuati said,
"International investors look for socially stable and peaceful
countries; strikes, political problems and disregard for the judicial system
scare off foreign investment. If
we hope to develop Honduras, every Honduran needs to change because we
cannot tolerate rising levels of impunity and corruption." -
La Tribuna Spanish phone company acquires 21% of Celtel As part of a
sales agreement between the U.S. telecommunications giant Motorola and the
Spanish company, Telefonica, the latter acquired 21 percent of the Honduran
cellular telephone company, CELTEL. The
agreement also cedes to Telefonica Motorola's shares in various other
cellular telephone companies in the Dominican Republic, Mexico, and Israel. - El Tiempo Basic consumer products jump 200% According to
Minister of Agriculture and Livestock Guillermo Alvarado Downing, the price
of basic consumer products, especially vegetables, has risen nearly 200
percent during the last six months. The
minister said heavy rains have seriously affected local production and
caused a shortage of fresh produce, causing prices to rise. -
La Tribuna
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Monday, October 9, 2000 Online Edition 41 |
Mineral exports up 15 percent According to
recent Central Bank statistics, mineral exports rose 15 percent or US$ 3.6
million during the first half of this year in comparison with 1999.
Zinc production is the highest, totaling $US24.1 million, followed by
silver at US$2.8 million. - El
Heraldo Commuters reject higher transportation costs Capital city
commuters have rejected proposed increases in the cost of urban
transportation, contending that fares should not rise each time the price of
fuel goes up. Urban bus companies are requesting a fare hike from Lps. 1.20
to Lps. 4.55. Several
interurban routes have also made similar requests. The Economic
Cabinet is at this time negotiating with transportation companies and a
decision should be made soon. - El
Heraldo Price of international phone calls goes down The national
phone company, HONDUTEL, announced that as of Sept. 1, international phone
calls made between 7 p.m. and 7 a.m. will cost approximately Lps. 0.30 less
than before. The price cut
was the result of a rate schedule agreement between HONDUTEL and U.S.
companies. - El Tiempo
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