Cuba says its trade figures are improving

HAVANA,  (Reuters) - Cuba has held the line on imports this year while increasing exports, which is allowing the cash-strapped government to “face up” to its unpaid debts to foreign creditors, Foreign Trade Minister Rodrigo Malmierca said.

 Without giving specific numbers, he said in the first nine months of the year exports of goods rose 21 percent from 2009, while imports were up just 1 percent, the combination of which cut the country’s trade deficit by 7 percent.

 In 2009, Cuba reported $2.9 billion in exports of goods, with imports of $7.1 billion, for a deficit of $4.1 billion.

 Not included in those figures are $9.9 billion in export revenues Cuba claims for services, which are primarily the sending of medical personnel overseas to work.

 Overspending created a severe cash crunch that led the communist-led government two years ago to freeze Cuban bank accounts held by foreign businesses and stop paying many foreign suppliers.

 The situation has eased a bit, with access to bank accounts loosening and more foreign suppliers getting paid.

 This year’s more favorable financial trends had “contributed to the increase in our income and allowed us to gradually face up to the liquidity problems in external finances,” said Malmierca, speaking at the opening of Havana’s annual international trade fair.

 Cuba has begun a major economic reform to cut the government’s role in the economy and increase its private sector.