To: Roger Bodine who wrote (12467 ) 8/21/1998 1:32:00 PM From: jhild Read Replies (3) | Respond to
Interesting that you would mention the dangers of devaluation. Since you brought it up you might find these articles of interest:Several alarm bells were sounded on the collapsing state of the Belizean economy; deficit ridden budgets with a government that has been borrowing excessively, putting the external reserve position under pressure. According to the Central Bank figures, the Esquivel government already owes over $100 million to the domestic commercial banks, and had borrowed so recklessly from foreign sources (Taiwan, World Bank, CDB, Citicorp, etc) that Belize now has an external debt in excess of half a billion dollars (over $500,000.00) The tax and spend policies of the UDP, together with the tight credit squeeze they have put on the private sector, if allowed to continue, according to the IMF statement, "would eventually undermine the sustainability of the exchange rate peg."The gross mismanagement of the Esquivel regime has so weakened the Belize dollar that the masters of devaluation are now questioning whether the 2 to 1 rate at which the Belize dollar is pegged to the US dollar can be maintained. Somebody should tell the IMF to leave Belize alone! belizetimes.com Belize City, August 13, 1998 The full IMF Report dated July 17, 1998 is now in our hands. The outgoing Prime Minister finds the timing very unfortunate, for it exposes the lies his propaganda machine has been spinning about what the IMF really says about the Belizean economy.It states clearly, in bold letters, that "the underlying international reserve position of Belize remains fragile." belizetimes.com
