Weekly review

11 percent inflation

The cumulate year on year inflation through April reached 10.95 percent, therefore reinforcing the overall trend of 11 percent a year. Since last December, the consumer price index has been around 11 percent and it peaked in February, at 11.40 percent. Even though it has eased in the last two months, this does not imply that prices decrease but that they increase less. The Central Bank’s target for the year was 7 to 9 percent, but bank chairman Francisco Gutierrez admits now that it is not likely to be attained. In April, consumer prices increased 0.84 percent, taking the overall figure to 3.12 percent this year’s first four months, according to the National Statistics and Census Bureau.

Service industry

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Services are expanding fast in the economy of Costa Rica. Ten years ago, they accounted for 54 percent of the Gross Domestic Product, but now they are 58 percent. Regarding employment, seven years ago 64 percent of the workers belonged to the sector, now the figure has increased to 68 percent. Also, the trend is likely to continue, because banks report that credit applications are mostly to fund service activities. According to analysts, as countries develop, the demand for services increases, so much so that the average is 66 percent of the overall production. Also, the service sector demands better training, therefore it also promotes education.

Casino hours

The Government of Costa Rica is enforcing the regulations on casinos, which until now have been operating around the clock and will have to limit themselves to a 6 p.m.-2 a.m. schedule. Casinos were first conceived as entertainment for guests of 3-or-more star hotels, but have proliferated in such a way that they operate by themselves, observe no time limitations, serve liquors, and can be accessed directly from public streets, among other irregularities. A spokesperson for the casino association said that they need to operate for at least 18 hours every day, from 12 noon through 6 a.m., and that the new schedule means the loss of at least 3,000 jobs.

Ticos arrested in the U.S.

Over 60 Costa Ricans were arrested by the U.S. Immigration and Naturalization Service January through April this year, for simulating having traveled back to Costa Rica from the United States when they actually hadn’t. Allegedly, the Ticos paid $100 to $200 to Costa Rican Immigration officials who stamped their passports as if they had actually traveled back to their homeland. Even though such violations can lead to sentences of up to 10 years, the Costa Rican consul in Miami said that the Costa Ricans are jailed for a couple of months before they are deported.

200 patrol cars

The first visit of a high-ranked Chinese official to Costa Rica ended with the donation of 200 pick up trucks, to be used by the police as patrol units, and $10 million in cooperation funds. The Chinese Assistant Prime Minister Hui Liangyu also signed five assistance agreements. The Costa Rican Minister of Foreign Affairs, Bruno Stagno, pointed out that a dozen agreements have been signed with Beijing so far. A spokesperson for the Chinese delegation said that they want to establish friendship and cooperation ties with the other Central American nations, too.

On U.S. buses

Sights of Costa Rica will be enjoyed by people traveling on buses in New York and San Francisco, California, as part of the strategy developed by the Costa Rican Board of Tourism (ICT in Spanish) to attract more visitors. Also, via their cell phones, New Yorkers will be able to “visit” the rainforest for a few seconds. ICT marketing director Maria Revelo said that even though the Costa Rican tourist sector has kept on expanding, it must act as if it were amidst a crisis, in order to keep promotion up. This year’s first quarter, arrivals recorded at international airports were 17 percent more than in the same period in 2007. Also, the promotion of Costa Rica will be reinforced this year in Europe, Latin America, and emerging markets such as Portugal, Russia, Ireland, China, and Japan.

Pre-Columbian art

The German police confiscated 1,200 pre-Columbian art pieces, 457 of which the National Museum of Costa Rica claims are part of the national heritage. The pieces are part of the “Patterson Collection”, the world’s largest private pre-Columbian one, owned by Leonardo Patterson, born in Costa Rica and now a German citizen. The pieces were confiscated after they were taken out of Spain and were bound for Germany. The police in Munich stated that the collection will be withheld until the proper owner of them is established.