Cuba’s government on Wednesday postponed a planned 500 percent hike in fuel prices due to a “cybersecurity incident,” Economy Ministry officials said.
The cash-strapped communist island government announced a five-fold increase from February 1 as part of a series of measures aimed at reducing the budget deficit.
Economy Ministry official Mildry Granadillo said: “A cybersecurity incident has occurred…The source of the outbreak has been identified as a virus from abroad.”
He did not provide a new date for the planned increase.
The government announced earlier this month that the price of regular gasoline would increase from 25 pesos (20 US cents) to 132 pesos per liter, while the price of premium gasoline would jump from 30 pesos to 156 pesos.
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The country of 11 million people is experiencing its worst economic crisis since the collapse of the Soviet bloc in the 1990s, due to the coronavirus pandemic, tightening US sanctions in recent years and structural weaknesses in the economy. .
According to official estimates, Cuba’s economy will contract by 2% in 2023, with inflation reaching 30%. Independent experts say this is likely an underestimate.
Fuel and other necessities are already hard to come by.
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Cuban motorists waited in long lines Wednesday to fill up their tanks before the measure took effect.
Lorenzo Castillo, 57, said he was worried about a “domino effect” and further inflation.
“If you take a taxi and it costs you P1,000, now it might cost you P2,000 or P3,000. I don’t know.”
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Authorities also ordered tourists to pay for fuel in foreign currency.
Electricity rates are scheduled to increase by 25% on March 1st.
The government subsidizes nearly all basic services and goods consumed by Cubans.