CADIVI RELEASES LIST OF COMPANY-SPECIFIC HARD

UNCLAS CARACAS 000976 SENSITIVE SIPDIS HQ SOUTHCOM ALSO FOR POLAD TREASURY FOR RJARPE NSC FOR RKING USDOC FOR 4332 MAC/ITA/WH/JLAO E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: ECON EFIN PGOV PREL VE SUBJECT: CADIVI RELEASES LIST OF COMPANY-SPECIFIC HARD CURRENCY APPROVALS REF: CARACAS 614 ¶1. (U) CADIVI, the GBRV entity which rations hard currency at the official exchange rate under Venezuela's currency controls, released on its website a table with company-specific data on hard currency approvals from 2004 through April 20, 2009. Each company's total is broken down between imports and all else (e.g., dividends, royalties, etc.). For example, according to the table, CADIVI approved during this time period a total of USD 3.3 billion for General Motors of Venezuela (the second highest total according to a local analyst's compilation),of which USD 3.2 billion was for imports. The company that received the highest amount of hard currency approved (USD 4.6 billion) was Sidor, the steel maker nationalized in 2008. According to the analyst's compilation, the top 25 largest recipients also included the Venezuelan subsidiaries of Ford, Cargill, Chrysler, Goodyear, Pfizer, Procter & Gamble, and Mack, as well as American Airlines. There are approximately 8600 companies listed in the 86-page table. ¶2. (SBU) Comment: To our knowledge CADIVI has never before released company-specific data of this kind, and we are somewhat puzzled as to why it is doing so now. It is always possible CADIVI is embracing greater transparency, though that is not the trend of most GBRV financial institutions. It is also possible CADIVI and/or the GBRV is preparing the groundwork for a counterattack against critics, particularly within the private sector and opposition, who blame CADIVI for problems in their company, their sector, or the economy at large (reftel). The data released show subsidiaries of foreign companies have been the largest recipients of hard currency approvals, and the GBRV might well go on to argue these companies have nothing to complain about. End comment. CAULFIELD