The new regulations come at a time when shortages in the domestic market of goods and services in high demand by the population and the private and cooperative sectors are hurting the economy.
They are also trying to combat the effects of the informal market, mainly in constant price increases.
According to the official, these measures aim to confirm the state monopoly of foreign trade by introducing state regulations and controls, strengthen the state enterprise that conducts foreign trade, increase the efficiency of operations with non-state forms of management, and continue to create targeted state micro, small and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) to develop the activity of import and export for the sale of wholesale products.
The First Deputy Minister of Mincex explained that work is being done to expand the circle of foreign investment companies already authorized in wholesale trade and provide investment opportunities primarily to companies with branches and representative offices on the island.
In the retail sector, the creation of joint ventures with partners from interested countries will be selectively promoted. In contrast, the modalities provided in the Foreign Investment Law will be maintained in the wholesale industry, including those through contracts for managing funds and services and companies with wholly foreign capital.
According to González, it is also a matter of promoting the sale of raw materials, inputs, equipment, and other goods that contribute to increasing national production, as well as the supply of food, detergents, financial products, and the installation of power generation plants.