Governments a agreed avoid buy debt have how in

investors led on reached seeking since the this

worldwide
There has been a lot of talk about the "debt ceiling" the United States. The debt ceiling is
a legal limit on much the federal government can borrow. Political disputes over that
amount concerned investors in recent weeks. American lawmakers must negotiate a
new ceiling every time the federal debt reaches that legal limit. National grows
when a government spends more money than it has available. offer bonds and
other investments to raise money to pay for spending. n return! the government
promises to repay! with interest! the who buy these securities. The financial
demands of "orld "ar #ne American lawmakers to establish a total debt limit. n $%$&!
'ongress that the president could borrow up to a set amount without
approval. 'ongress has agreed to change the debt limit $( times )(($. *ut the ma+or
parties may disagree on spending levels or the need to borrow to pay for government
operations. #ther nations United States Treasury securities because they are considered
the safest investment the world. The partial shutdown of the federal government led
to concern about the safety of these investments. 'ongress agreed to re,open
government without enforcing the debt ceiling only one day before borrowing the
legal limit. -awmakers agreed to let the president decide what Treasury .epartment
could borrow through /ebruary &th. 'ongress must now negotiate new debt limit and
resolve other budgetary issues in order to another crisis. /or 0#A -earning 1nglish! 2m
'arolyn Presutti.
English Jersey Shafir The University ability affected after and
before book chosen condition decreases intelligence is missing of their
time worry
New research shows how a lack of money! food or even can affect decision making and
the ability to act. n the ! "Scarcity3 "hy 4aving Too -ittle 5eans So 5uch!" Professors
Sendhil 5ullainathan 1ldar Shafir e6amine the mental stress of dealing with a lack
something necessary. Sendhil 5ullainathan is an economist. 4e teaches at 4arvard
in 5assachusetts. 1ldar Shafir teaches psychology at Princeton University in New .
Their research combined theories from economics and psychology to e6plain behaviors.
two borrowed a word from digital technology to describe how thinking harmed by scarcity.
They use the word! "bandwidth" to describe the of the mind to remember and plan.
They say mental bandwidth when people have too little. "hen mental energy is
divided between and planning! planning is affected. #ne e6periment in ndia tested
the of farmers before and after the yearly harvest. /armers scored higher
they had sold their crops. "orry over the lack of money the harvest had temporarily
decreased their intelligence. The two men e6perienced own decreased bandwidth. They
found that a lack of enough time their performance in all parts of their lives. Sendil
5ullainathan was for a 5acArthur 7enius Award! yet he says he found himself
meetings! not answering e,mails and forgetting to call his mother. 1ldar says the
research is meaningful for public policy. 4e says the of being poor or hungry or even
too busy restricts the to think and act to make things better. /or 0#A
-earning ! 2m Ale6 0illarreal.
1994. ut !estaurant The a advertisement are auditor"general has in
is #obs of officials $oor received su$ervisor the
with
South African .epartment of -abor reported last month that the nation too few +obs
for unskilled laborers. The department also said there not enough workers for highly
skilled positions. The sharp differences between and skills were apparent recently when
officials advertised a +ob opening the government. The position was that of auditor,
general,! or chief financial . "ith a )8 percent unemployment rate nationwide!
there was no shortage interest in the +ob. Ninety people asked to be considered.
*ut said many of them lacked the necessary skills or education. The
is responsible for supervising and independently e6amining South Africa2s finances.
The said the position re9uired the person to be a trained accountant. many
un9ualified people applied. The -abor .epartment report blamed the nation2s education
system. *ut! for unskilled workers! the story is very different. industry official T:
0an der "alt says the businesses he works get a huge number of applications for every
+ob. Se+amothopo 5otau a member of South Africa2s parliament. 4e says education has
been ma+or problem in South Africa2s development. 4e notes that many blacks a
poor education under white minority rule. Apartheid officially ended in 4e says many
people are university graduates! but they cannot get where there is a need for skilled
workers. This is because education these graduates have is not enough to place them
in with high,skill re9uirements. /or 0#A -earning 1nglish! 2m -aurel *owman.
%&''(''' )r !adomske *hat are from has his home in
investor invited new $ossibility $ossible $ro$erty ranch the
they to years
do these four things have in common3 a proposed wind farm the American state of
"ashington; a gold mine in daho; a casino in -as 0egas; and ski resort e6pansions in
0ermont< They all investments for wealthy foreigners seeking green cards to live in
United States. Under American law! foreigners can get such visas if invest at least
=>((!((( to create at least $( +obs in country. 4ere is an e6ample of the program works.
A few ago :ordan 7agner and his wife needed to move from their in 'anada to a
drier climate! like Ari?ona. At first! the of getting a visa seemed unlikely. *ut then!
he heard about immigrant investor visa. :orndan 7agner and several other foreign
investors offered dollars each to build an assisted living center in *ellingham!
"ashington. . 7agner was credited with creating many +obs during the recession! and
whole family received green cards. 'ompanies that bring together investors and
borrowers are officially known as "1*,> regional centers". The name comes the part of
the immigration law that set up the immigrant visa. Some Americans have e6pressed
concerns about the program. -andowner 4arland first heard about it when a group of
wealthy @oreans were to invest in a wind farm on land ne6t to his . 4e fears
a wind farm would reduce the value of his . Aet! even with the disputes over
immigration! the foreign investor program a lot of support in 'ongress. There is also a
move make the program permanent
+frican +merican Ethio$ia Euro$ean ,roman -e The United
be countries different in long or signed talks ta.es the
this to
United States is considering the future of an American law called African 7rowth
and #pportunity Act! or A7#A. This law allows countries sub,Saharan Africa to e6port
some goods and natural resources to the States without dutiesA7#A is set to end in
)($>. t was into law in )((( and has been e6tended once already. 1arlier month!
American Trade Bepresentative 5ichael /roman met with African ministers in for talks
on the possible renewal of A7#A. 4e said the States is interested in African trade talks
with the 1uropean Union. said American officials want to know about the results of
those before they decide what to do about e6tending the law. 5r. said African
partner countries need to think about how they want work with the United States on
renewing it. 4e said the need to understand how this issue relates to their
negotiations with 1uropean Union. 1U economic partnership agreements with African
countries would be from A7#A. Not only would African products be duty,free in
1urope. goods sent to African markets would not be sub+ect to import either.
5r. /roman said the wording of A7#A might need to changed so the law is more like the
1U partnership agreements. said the United States is unlikely to support calls for
giving partners one,way access to the American market while limiting trade
for companies. n the end! the United States 'ongress will decide whether not
to approve an e6tension of the law! and for how . /or 0#A -earning 1nglish! 2m Ale6
0illarreal.
The This a are domain for from if
or $ay $ayments $lans rescue retirees small suffering the their
these to
American housing market is growing stronger. Aet many areas are still from the
collapse of the market in )((C. Bichmond is a city 'alifornia. 5ore than half of the
homeowners there owe more their home loans than the properties are currently worth.
Such loans risky for lenders since people in that situation often stop making .
Now! city officials are moving forward with a plan to rescue struggling homeowners. The
city wants to buy the mortgages from banks an amount e9ual to the current value of the
properties. t to work with an investment company to help each homeowner get
new mortgage through government programs and private investors. 'ity officials say banks
do not cooperate! they will force the lenders to sell loans. Bichmond plans to use the
legal power called eminent domain. allows officials to take a property but re9uires the
government to fair market value. State and local governments use this legal power
take property needed for public purposes! such as new roads! schools economic
development. At least two banks are asking a federal court intervene. They want the
court to prevent the city of Bichmond using eminent domain. -awyers for the banks say
investors such as would lose money. They also say the action would interfere
with contracts with investors. The United States paid billions of dollars to banks
during the world financial crisis. Now! the courts must decide Bichmond! 'alifornia! can
help rescue homeowners through the power of eminent . /or 0#A -earning 1nglish! 2m
-aurel *owman.
E.$orts -e )r /orth !ecent This after aimed and
by condemned decision on o$erated $rocess said the ties
to with year
'hinese trade information shows that 'hina2s e6ports to North @orea decreased
more than $D percent during the first si6 months of )($D. is the first time in E years that
e6ports have fallen. decreased by about =$.8 billion from :anuary to :une compared
to same period last year. The last time e6ports from 'hina to @orea dropped was
in )((% during the world financial crisis. This ! there was a large decrease in shipments
of unprocessed oil to @orea. -u 'hao studies at the -iaoning Academy of Social
Sciences. says 'hina is the biggest oil provider to North @orea. 4e last year! 'hina
e6ported >((!((( tons of oil to the country. . -u says 'hina placed trade restrictions on
North @orea this year its third nuclear test. 4e says the 'hinese government made
the based on a United Nations Security 'ouncil resolution. North @orea2s decision
carry out its third nuclear test earlier this year has affected between the two countries.
/ollowing the test! 'hinese students called on government to completely cut ties with
North @orea. 'hinese officials have the test. They have called for the continuation
of si6,nation talks at ending the country2s nuclear weapons programs. n 5ay! the
government People2s *ank of 'hina announced it was no longer doing business
North @orea2s foreign trade bank. Becently officials from the United States South @orea
met. They announced their plan to continue placing restrictions North @orea and to seek
more assistance from 'hina in the . /or 0#A -earning 1nglish! 2m Ale6 0illarreal.
+frica0s )irima !ecent confirmed could element e.$ected from has
least mining of o$enness $lanned $ublicThe re$orted that the which
would
discoveries of mineral wealth in @enya could help add to 1ast biggest
economy. The government also is taking steps to improve the of the mining industry.
*ut some citi?ens are concerned that at one newly announced mining pro+ect will
damage local communities. The government warned companies about making
announcements about new resources before they are . @enya2s secretary of mining!
Na+ib *alala! says the government will ask companies for details about their findings )$
days before making them discoveries also could upset some communities where big
mining pro+ects are . #ne e6ample is the recent discovery of rare minerals in
the 4ills! in the coastal area of @wale. The mining company 'ortec finding a
deposit of more than 8(( kilograms of niobium. The is used in making steel and metal
mi6tures called superconducting alloys allow electric currents to travel very easily.
'ortec says the discovery be worth =>( billion*ut a dispute has begun between the
company! government and the local community. -eaders of the 5i+ikenda ethnic
group! lives near @enya2s coast! say they practice their religion in the 4ills. The
@enyan government has not announced how payments it receives mining companies!
called royalties! would be used. The 5ining Secretary is to present legislation
proposing that the central government take &( percent mining royalties. -ocal
governments would receive )> percent and local communities receive five percent/or
0#A -earning 1nglish! 2m 'arolyn Presutti
Select Play button. Listen and fill in the blanks with suggest words
Detroit Learning a at came car city's country's court
do expert have hurt is large more moved reduce said
the to
5ayor .ave *ing had to report some bad news recently. 4e .etroit was seeking
bankruptcy protection. The move would give the city protection from creditors. The
decision to declare bankruptcy is an effort restructure and reduce debt. t comes at a
difficult time for . n 5arch! 5ichigan 7overnor Bick Snyder named @evyn #rr! a
bankruptcy ! to oversee the city2s financial problems. .etroit has been struggling
to a budget deficit of more than =D(( million. n addition! the long,term debt
has increased to at least =$C billion.
.etroit2s problems grown over many years. 5ichigan State University professor 1ric
Scorsone says city depended too much on one industry3 automobile manufacturing. :obs
with makers were a big reason why .etroit was one of the largest cities half a
century ago. n the $%>(s! it had population of about $.C million people. Today the number
is down less than C((!(((. Bobin *oyle is a professor of urban planning "ayne State
University. 4e says! over the years! many .etroit residents to areas outside the city or
even left the state. That .etroit2s ability to invest in itself. t is rare for a
American city of seek bankruptcy protection. n $%&>! New Aork 'ity close before the
federal government agreed to provide money. .etroit! however! the largest city to seek
bankruptcy.
Now! a federal +udge is consider .etroit2s re9uest. #ne of the main issues is what to
about the retirement pay of city workers. 'urrently! there are many retired workers
than those paying into the pension system. /or 0#A 1nglish! 2m Ale6 0illarreal.
Sauvignon Two a also called com$any e.$orted e.$orts
for include is known of one $art where wineries
winery world
American wine producers are hoping to increase their sales in 'hina! the country2s
growing middle class is drinking wine. The United States +ust &E million dollars in
wine to 'hina last year. *ut are growing at a rate of nearly )( percent a year.
years ago! former basketball star Aao 5ing launched a wine company Aao /amily "ines.
t is based in 'alifornia2s Napa 0alley ,,,, of the top wine producing areas in the world.
Tom 4inde with Aao /amily "ines. 4e says the vineyard grows only 'abernet
grapes because many people in 'hina like red wine. The small makes a costly product.
ts top cabernet sells for 8)> dollars bottle. Napa 0alley2s *lack Stallion "inery also looks
to 'hina as promising market. 4olly 1vans works for the company. She says the
has two wines that are sold throughout the United States and in 'hina. 5any moderately
priced wines are e6ported to 'hina. They some from the San Antonio "inery in -os
Angeles. /ifteen percent its production goes to 'hinaThe "ine nstitute represents more
than $!((( and allied businesses through 'alifornia. Spokesperson -insey 7allagher
says her group always receiving re9uests from 'hina. *ut she says the country is
problem for marketing. She says that! in 'hina! it is not that 'alifornia is the fourth
largest wine producing area in the ! producing many kinds of wine. "inemakers hope to
e6pand the market fine dry wines! including white wines! which are now a small of
the 'hinese market/or 0#A -earning 1nglish! 2m Ale6 0illarreal.
1'12 ra3il ut 4emonstrators Economic English 5t !ousseff The
a action and announced country hold in $lebiscite si. to
with
concerns have been at the heart of the recent protests in . *ra?ilian
President .ilma Bousseff answered growing public unrest over government spending
economic concerns. #n :une )E! she proposed a popular vote! or ! on a
constitutional process to make reforms needed by the countryPresident also
described a =)D billion spending plan. The money would go public transportation and
would support investment in education and health care. *ra?ilian leader also promised to
fight political corruption. President Bousseff met state governors! city mayors and
protest leaders in the capital! *rasilia. is estimated that one million people took part in
protests across . .emonstrators are angry that the government is spending billions of
dollars public money in preparations for two huge sporting events. *ra?il will the
//A "orld 'up soccer championship ne6t year and then the #lympic 7ames two years
later. The protests started when the government it would increase transportation
costs! such as bus and subway fares. the protests soon turned to other economic issues!
and spread. As result! the government suspended its plans for the transportation fare
increases. have been demanding better health care! education and public
transportation and against corruption. As *ra?il prepares for the ma+or sporting events!
the is also facing rising inflation. The inflation rate is now over percent! which is
higher than the government2s target. /or 0#A -earning ! 2m 5ario Bitter.
1''9. owman 6hinese Ghana Ghanaians Some and because
believe e.$orts has hos$itals more no now of oil says
the three
arrested more than $(( 'hinese nationals in :une. They were accused illegally
mining gold. n /ebruary! Fambia sei?ed a 'hinese operated mine of safety concerns.
And 7abon has decided to sei?e property from foreign oil companies! including one
from 'hina. Some observers say these other incidents appear to be a reaction by African
governments against investment on the continent. 'hina became Africa2s top trade
partner in Aet some Africans believe they are not getting enough for their .
*right Simons is with the 5AN group. 4e says 'hina is longer known only for giving loans
and sending workers to build and roads. 4e says 'hina is now a business partner.
7hana taken steps against foreigners involved in "shallow mining" for gold.
#nly can get government approval for this kind of mining. *right Simons some
7hanaians "rent" the permits to foreigners who have the money training to actually mine
the gold. #bservers say nations like Niger 7abon want to get more for their natural
resources. They want money! more local +obs and better living conditions. "orldwide
demand for ! coal! iron ore and uranium has made their negotiating position
stronger. nations are also concerned about abusive or illegal operations. n 7abon!
government says it is planning not to e6tend operating permits to companies! including
Adda6! which is part of 'hina2s Sinopec. 5any e6perts the partnership between 'hina
and Africa will continue to grow! but perhaps on more e9ual terms. /or 0#A -earning
1nglish! 2m -aurel .
41 + +ngel ,ood 5m$orts 7earning 8E64 The and because
double food for grain in meat milk of $ork
say that three world
new report says 'hina2s demand for food imports will sharply rise the ne6t $( years.
The United Nations /ood and Agriculture #rgani?ation the #rgani?ation for 1conomic
'ooperation and .evelopment made the prediction. They 'hina will increase its imports
of grains! oil seeds and meat. 7urria is secretary,general of the #1'.. 4e says 'hina2s
need for is growing at a time when world food production is decreasing. to
'hina are e6pected to grow at a yearly rate of percent to $.& million tons by the year
)()). 'hina2s imports crops used to feed animals! called coarse grains! are e6pected
to by )()). And imports of oil seeds are predicted to rise percent. Angel 7urria
says 'hina2s economic growth is fueling its hunger imports. 4e says the country already
has a big effect on food markets. :ose 7ra?iano .a Silva is the head of the and
Agriculture #rgani?ation. 4e says reducing the large amount of food is now wasted
would help meet the growing demand for food. rise in the 'hinese demand for food is
e6pected to cause and other commodity prices to rise. *usinesses are taking new
steps of 'hina2s influence on world food trade. -ast month! the 'hinese
processing company Shuanghui announced a =& billion offer for the American company
Smithfield /oods. 'hina is already the world2s biggest importer of and soybeans. t is
e6pected to become the world2s biggest consumer pork! passing the 1uropean Union within
$( years. The /A# and say that will cause international pork prices to rise. /or
0#A 1nglish! 2m Ale6 0illarreal.
+merican 6hina English ,oods -e Smithfield The are believes
brought doing ham in is ocean on $urchase
stockholders turned was
'hinese meat processing company Shuanghui nternational is proposing to buy
the ham and pork producer Smithfield /oods. t would be the biggest of an
American company by a 'hinese buyer. 4am and pork the meat of pigs. 0irginia ham is
famous around the world. town of Smithfield! 0irginia! where the company started! calls
itself the capital of the world. -arry Santure is the sales manager for /oods4e
says the e6plorer 5arco Polo brought a basis for curing to taly from 'hina. 4e says this
kind of cured ham out to be the prosciutto that we know today. -ater! settlers
the formula for making prosciutto with them to the United States. says the main reason
Smithfield became the center of ham processing because local Native Americans had
methods for producing salt from nearby water. 0irginia "ade manages a store that
speciali?es in ham made Smithfield. She says the ham is aged at least si6 months salt.
She says the uncooked hams are similar to ham in . *efore Smithfield /oods can be sold
to the 'hinese company! the must be approved by the American government and by
Smithfield /oods . There have been concerns in the past about some 'hinese
companies business in the United States. *ut 7ary 4ufbauer e6pects the
'ommittee /oreign nvestment in the United States to approve this purchase. 4e with
the Peterson nstitute for nternational 1conomics in "ashington. 5r. 4ufbauer the
'hinese company is buying the world2s good opinion of Smithfield ! including the 9uality
and safety of its products. /or 0#A -earning ! 2m 'arolyn Presutti.
+frica 6hancellor 6ity 5n 5ndia June 9ofi She charity countries
critics develo$ment discuss o$erations $rofits says such ta. territories wealthy
where world0s
*ritain! demonstrators recently protested outside the Treasury to call on the
richest countries to act against ta6 havens. These are countries or that have low
ta6 rates for businesses. 'ompanies can place their in ta6 havens to avoid the higher
ta6 rates of countries they earned the income. An investigation found that ta6 havens
cost =DC billion every year in lost ta6es. /ormer United Nations secretary,
general Annan led the investigation. The demonstrators at *ritain2s Treasury called
on 7eorge #sborne to discuss the practice with finance ministers from
other countries. 5elanie "ard is with the "1nough /or 1veryone f" campaign.
said she believes many people in *ritain and the world oppose ta6 avoidanceTa6 havens
and low,ta6 countries like reland are popular. *ut of ta6 havens say big companies
transfer profits out of the on which their income depends. Bonen Palan is a professor
at University -ondon. 4e says capital in some African countries is funding in
other parts of the world because of such transfers. The ActionAid says the brewing
company SA*5iller uses a comple6 system of havens. t says this system moves profits out
of the company2s in developing countries like 7hana. SA*5iller denies any ta6
abuses. t in )($( it paid about =)>( million in corporate ta6es in and sub,
Saharan Africa. *ritish Prime 5inister .avid 'ameron has promised to the issue of ta6
havens at the 7C leaders meeting in . /or 0#A -earning 1nglish! 2m -aurel *owman.
+bout English a as changing com$lete early easier for has
ho$ing in #ob many nurses nursing the to trouble
one,third of new nursing graduates in the United States are having finding
work. Ale6andra *auernschub is finishing a master2s degree program at University of
5aryland. She has done well in the program! earning highest grade point average possible.
*ut she is worried because she not received +ob offers. Aet there is hope for nurses
who studies at four,year schools or graduate level programs. They have an
time finding a +ob in health care than nurses graduating from two,year degree program.
16perts say there are fewer +ob openings because in their >(s and 8(s are delaying
retirement. These workers are to rebuild the savings they lost a few years ago
during financial crisis. :ane @irschling is head of the University of 5aryland2s
school. She says weak economic conditions have created tensions in the market. The
number of students entering nursing school has risen sharply recent years. At the same
time! the United States is preparing the retirement of millions of ",.baby,boomers,." That
is the name given Americans born between the end of "orld "ar Two and the
$%8(s. 4undreds of thousands of nurses are e6pected to retire +ust people their age need
more medical care. 4ealth care laws are in the United States. 4ealth e6perts say
they e6pect demand for to care for the sick and aged to grow. They say older
nurses will retire if the economy improves. This would create openings for younger nurses
and recent college graduates. /or 0#A -earning ! 2m Ale6 0illarreal.
+irways !56S Euro$eans The Tourism cham$ionshi$ grew has home in
increase industry last member number smaller started to visa
visitors
number of people visiting South Africa grew by almost $( percent year. #ne
country making that number grow is 'hina. 'hinese investment been increasing in South
Africa. So has the number of 'hinese to the country. 'hina sends the fourth largest
number of tourists South Africa. 5ore than $D(!((( 'hinese tourists went there last
year. remain the biggest tourism group. *ut the percentage of 'hinese
tourists by >8 percent from )($$ to )($). *everly Schafer is a of 'ape Town2s
city government. She represents an
area that is to a famous soccer stadium. She says the number of visitors the
country increased after South Africa hosted the "orld 'up soccer in )($(. South
Africa2s travel industry has been noting the growing of 'hinese tourists. 5ariette .u
Toit,4elmbold has worked with 'ape Town . She says the industry is looking for
'hinese,speaking guides and has
providing information in 5andarin 'hinese. There are several reasons for the
in 'hinese tourists. #ne could be South Africa2s inclusion in the economic group! which
also includes 'hina. Also! South Africa recently added application centers in *ei+ing and
Shanghai. And last year! South African added direct flights between *ei+ing and
:ohannesburg. Traditionally! 'ape Town2s tourism has been directed toward 1uropeans
and Americans! who often travel in groups or as couples. 4owever! 'hinese tourists
often prefer to travel larger groups. /or 0#A -earning 1nglish! 2m 5ario Bitter.
-e 9han 7earning )any 8ther :akistan :akistani ;ouTube difficult five
in income is more occu$ational of says so
ta. the young
Pakistanis are increasingly concerned about their economy. Fafar Saeed directs
an training center in slamabad! the capital. /or the past $( years! center
has trained thousands of people for work in an increasingly economy. Now! the
business is struggling with issues ranging from loss electricity to inflation. Fafar Saeed
blames the government for the situation. says his organi?ation has suffered big financial
losses in the last years. #ne of the reasons is long power outages. Another reason
that inflation makes it hard for people to pay his fees they can learn skills that lead to
income.
people share his opinion. Street protests against power outages are common
Pakistan. Some outages can now last an entire day. Ashfa9ue 4assan is a professor at
the NUST *usiness School in slamabad. 4e there has been too little political will to fi6
the national system. -ess than one percent of Pakistan2s $C( million people pay
ta6es. About &( percent of federal lawmakers did not complete any ta6 documents last
year. As Professor @han notes! that makes it difficult to ask ma+or donors to the country
for help. 4e other nations 9uestion why they should provide Pakistan with aid
when does not ta6 its own wealthy citi?ens.
Si6ty percent of the population is under the age of )>. #pinion surveys show
that people are most concerned about economic problems and corruption.
/or 0#A 1nglish! 2m -aurel *owman.G Aou can watch more captioned videos at
0#A -earning 1nglish website and the 0#A -earning 1nglish channel on
"" 14th. 6a$riles ,or -e )aduro <ene3uela about care has
im$orts investment is needs oil on reduced showed the to
winner
is facing a number of economic problems. nflation is putting pressure many
businesses. Bot?en 0illabon owns a gift store. *ut his business American dollars to
import products made in 'hina. 4e is unable e6change 0ene?uelan money for dollars at
the official e6change rate of 8.> bolivares to the dollar. 4e says the supply of
dollars even limited on the black market! where dollars cost much more. says that is
why business at his store is down. 0ene?uela the highest rate of inflation in South
America. n /ebruary! 0ene?uela the value of its currency by one third! which has
made more costly. The economic troubles have resulted in shortages of products ,
, from necessities like food to beauty products. 0ene?uela is a ma+or e6porter. The
nation2s oil wealth paid for many social programs during $E,year,rule of former president
4ugo 'have?. *ut 0ene?uela2s recent presidential election there are divisions in the
country. Nicolas 5aduro was declared the of a close election over opposition candidate
4enri9ue 'apriles on April 5r. 'apriles disputed the vote and called for a recount.
4enri9ue is a lawyer. 4e promised to open the economy to foreign .
Nicolas 5aduro is former union leader. 4e served as vice president 5r. 'have? before the
president died of cancer last month. 5r. promised to continue the social policies and
programs of 5r. 'have?. supporters! the election was about saving programs for free
housing! health and education. /or 0#A -earning 1nglish! 2m 'arolyn Presutti.