 Hurricane hits island as government turns inward
Los Angeles, August 13 – Hurricane Charley slammed into Cuba early on Friday morning, powered by 105 mile-per-hour winds and dropping heavy rain on Havana.
Although the eastern side of the island has been suffering from a paralyzing drought, the western area is getting drenched. The far western states of Matanzas and Pinar del Rio were hit hard, of note to cigar lovers since the fabled Vuelta Abajo tobacco growing region is located in the Pinar del Rio.
Hurricane Charley should not seriously impact the 2004-05 harvest since planting is usually started in late October or early November and harvested in the first quarter of the next year.
It’s the fourth major hurricane to slam into the Pinar del Rio in the past five years. In October 1999, Hurricane Irene damaged 173 acres of tobacco plantings. In 2002, two storms pounded the area, with Hurricane Isidore making land on September 20, followed by Hurricane Lili on October 1, crushing many of the area’s curing barns and sorting warehouses.
Charley was expected to hit Key West and the Florida coast sometime late on Friday.
Havana looks inward after decade of foreign investment:
A major report on the 14th annual meeting of the Association for the Study of the Cuban Economy in the Ft. Lauderdale Sun-Sentinel this week detailed a major switch in Cuban attitudes towards the foreign investment which has rescued the island’s economy in the aftermath of the death of the Soviet Union in 1991.
Conference speakers noted that foreign investment in Cuba dropped in 2003 for the first time in ten years, with a record number of joint ventures with foreign entities dissolved. According to statistics presented at the event, there are only 343 “foreign economic associations” by the end of last year. The result, of course, is greater central control of the Cuban economy.
Wrote Hemlock, “While total output still lags below 1990 levels, Cuba’s economy now muddles along, based mainly on tourism, cash sent from Cuban abroad and exports of nickel and several other items – all sectors with ample foreign participation.”
The article noted that a British market research firm estimates that the Cuban economy will grow at about a three percent rate in 2004, after 2.3 percent growth in 2003 and two percent in 2002. How new U.S. restrictions on the transfer of funds from Cuban-Americans to relatives on the island was not mentioned.
Per capita purchasing power of Cubans was estimated at approximately $2,800 per person, about the same as Honduras and about a tenth of the U.S. average.
Partagas 150s staying put:
Following up on our report earlier this week on a chest of rarely-seen Dominican-made Partagas 150s offered at $2,400 on eBay, no one won.
There was one bid for the 15-drawer chest of 150 cigars, of which one had been smoked, at the opening bid of $2,400. But the Houston-based seller’s reserve price was higher and therefore, there was no sale. It has not been re-listed . . . yet.
Coming next week:
Some of the samples we received at the recent Retail Tobacco Dealers of America convention and trade show for our full-bodied tasting have not yet returned to peak condition, thanks to the brutal Las Vegas summer heat and low humidity.
So, we’ll try to complete our tasting by month’s end. But we will have our unique list of the “Top Ten Cigar Gadgets You Have to Have” for your enjoyment starting on Monday with full details available only to our CigarWire subscribers. It’s $2 a month . . . sign up now!
~ Rich Perelman
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