Thursday, October 28, 2004
Cuba may permit euro beyond tourist spots
Associated Press Havana, October 28
Communist officials are thinking about extending the use of the euro beyond a few resorts for vacationing Europeans as the country moves to halt widespread use of the American dollar, Cuba's tourism minister said on Wednesday.
Since Fidel Castro's Government decided to replace the US dollar with the local Cuban convertible peso, authorities "have been studying coordinating with Cuba's Central Bank to extend the acceptance of the euro in other areas of the country, Tourism Minister Manuel Marrero said.
The euro currently is accepted at several coastal resorts on this Caribbean island, including Varadero beach, east of Havana, and Jardines del Rey, located in a string of keys along the main island's northern central coast.
The European currency is also accepted at hotels, restaurants, shops and other businesses in the eastern beach resorts of Santa Lucia, Covarrubias and Holguin, and Cayo Largo del Sur, off the main island's southwestern coast.
Cuba, which hopes to receive two million visitors this year, is a popular vacation spot for Europeans.
Extending the use of the euro outside those tourism areas could make Cuba a more attractive destination for Europeans, who would no longer have to change the European Union's common currency into US dollars for use on the island.
Increasing acceptance of the euro would also help Cuba start building a new hard currency base as it removes the US currency from general circulation.
President Fidel Castro announced on Monday night that his government was launching a two-week process Tuesday to eliminate the US currency from circulation in its stores and businesses in response to stepped-up American sanctions.
"It is recommended that after that date that visitors to the country don't carry United States dollars," Marrero said. Instead, they should bring euros, Canadian dollars, British sterling pounds or Swiss francs, he added.
Once in Cuba, tourists can exchange those foreign currencies for the Cuban convertible currency _ unless they are already in an area where the euro is freely accepted at businesses. Marrero said about 75 per cent of visitors to Cuba come from countries where the US dollar is not commonly used.
Tourism is one of Cuba's most important economic sectors, bringing in around $2 billion.
© HT Media Ltd. 2004.