Petrocaribe leaders to bolster up trade efforts

MANAGUA - Reuters

Venezuela’s President Nicolas Maduro speaks (3rd L) during the eighth PetroCaribe Summit organized in Managua on June 29. REUTERS photo

Delegations from over a dozen countries that are members of the Venezuelan-led oil alliance Petrocaribe agreed on June 29 to adopt a framework for promoting trade within the block.

At the close of the eighth-annual Petrocaribe summit hosted by Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega in this Central American capital, leaders agreed to focus efforts on boosting trade in regional transportation, communication, agriculture, tourism and social service projects.

“The journey has been very encouraging because in short order ... we have organized the essential components of a Petrocaribe economic zone,” said Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro at the close of the summit.

The trade agreement did not go into details, nor did the gathering formally discuss changing Petrocaribe’s existing oil deals.