Venezuelan president reaffirms determination to curb price hikes

Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro Wednesday affirmed determination to control price, saying no one can "make me retreat from this economic offensive." Addressing an official event in El Pao, in the western state of Cojedes, Maduro said a bill regulating prices, costs and revenue is ready to be submitted to congress to guarantee the public is charged "fair prices" for goods and services. Facing shortage of basic staples and a staggering inflation that stays above 20 percent for the past six years, Maduro ordered the military to take over appliances stores accused of selling electronic goods at inflated prices over the weekend and slashed by more than half prices for washing machines, televisions and other white goods. The price cuts measure has been extended to textiles, footwear, toys, hardware and automobiles. Maduro said that despite a campaign by the country's conservative right-wing forces to discredit his government's efforts to lower prices, he will not back down. He also said he has planned to meet with 700 business leaders of small- and medium-sized companies, as part of the government's offensive against the "economic war" launched by the opposition. "I will talk with them face to face, I will call on them to work honestly in the country," he said.