Venezuela trade mission coming

A Venezuelan trade mission will visit this country on August 9 with a view to buying agricultural and agro processed products.{{more}}

Prime Minister Dr. Ralph Gonsalves said on Monday that Venezuela is interested in purchasing any products that this country has to sell.

“…They are interested in buying even though they recognize that in some of the products .., which they would buy, they may be able to get some of them cheaper elsewhere,” said Gonsalves who was in the South American nation for a one-day meeting last week Thursday.

“But our products would have a particular quality about them, and a particular uniqueness about then, that it is felt that they can justify the purchases,” Gonsalves told reporters, adding that the agricultural products include bananas.

He also announced that this country will, in the next two weeks, be able to access US$20 million (EC$54 million) of the $US50 million (EC$135 million) that the country was cleared to borrow from Petro Caribe and ALBA (Bolivarian Alliance for the Peoples of our America) funds.

The 25-year loan was secured at 2.5 per cent an annum and Gonsalves said such a rate makes about 70 per cent of the loan a grant. (KXC)