Since Cuba has two kinds of markets — one formal and one informal (black market) — calculating inflation rates is tricky. The latest estimates put the inflation rate in the government-controlled formal market at 31.24%, and as much as 500% in the informal market. Since goods available in the formal market are extremely scarce, many Cubans have to rely on foreign-currency stores and on the informal market.

Meanwhile, salaries remain stagnant, and exchange rates for dollars and euros –which are needed to buy scarce goods — continue to make the peso ever more worthless. What all of this means is that life in Castrogonia became more intolerable than ever in 2023. And all signs point to a worsening of scarcity and inflation in 2024. Vamos bien!

Loosely translated from Diario de Cuba

Cuba closed 2023 with an interannual inflation of 31.34% in its formal market, compared to the 39.07% registered in the previous year, mainly due to increases in restaurants, transportation and food, the National Office reported this Thursday. of Statistics and Information (ONEI).