Economic Hardtimes Returning To Cuba?

Empty shelves are seen at a supermarket in Havana, Cuba April 4, 2019. REUTERS/Stringer

France 24: Cuba newsprint shortage sounds alarm for economy

The newsprint shortages which forced Cuba's Communist daily to run a trimmed-down edition on Friday would pass off as a simple supply glitch in most other countries, but in Havana they carry chilling memories of the not-so-distant past.

The last time the government cut back on newspapers because of a lack of newsprint was in the early 1990s, when Fidel Castro ushered in a "Special Period" of drastic belt-tightening in the wake of the collapse of his main sponsor, the Soviet Union.

Today, the Caribbean state is facing difficulties once again, with US President Donald Trump -- who has lashed out at Cuba for its support of Venezuela's socialist regime -- determined to tighten Washington's six-decade trade embargo.

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Update: Cuba cuts newspaper size due to paper scarcity as shortages bite (Reuters)

WNU Editor: This is going to hurt .... U.S. sanctions target Cuba's role in propping up Venezuela government: Mnuchin (Reuters).

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