Businesses “beyond desperate” for greenbacks
While authorities try to bring the currency situation back into equilibrium, hard pressed merchants are resorting to new methods to find the U.S. dollars to pay for imports. Since last week the big Hofius store on Albert Street has posted a sign in its window offering a twenty percent discount to those customers who pay for their purchases in U.S. dollars. While Central Bank authorities told News 5 the practice lies somewhere in a grey area of the law, Hofius boss John Crump assures us it’s on the up and up. According to Crump, his company was allowed by the Central bank to open a U.S. dollar account and can use it to hold the proceeds of any sales made in greenbacks. Those funds can then be used to purchase imports to restock the shelves. While the policy has yet to raise many Yankee dollars, the company had few options. “We are beyond desperation,” says Crump, who reports a backlog of over a quarter million U.S. dollars owed to foreign suppliers. At this rate, the veteran businessman says he and other merchants may be forced to go under if the situation does not improve in the next few months. Although he has a longstanding relationship with two local banks, one is able to supply less than ten percent of the dollars he needs, while the other has not given him one U.S. cent for over four months. Unfortunately, the U.S. dollar shortage is only part of the problem. Many of those blue notes waiting in line patiently in local accounts are earning little or no interest, as many banks are already so overloaded with Belize dollars that they are not even accepting certificates of deposit. And with loan money so easy to obtain from the overstocked banks, the demand for expensive imports like cars and home appliances only makes the situation worse. While government continues to bear the brunt of criticism for the problem, at this point there is little Belmopan can do except what it is already doing: encourage the productive export sector, which is expected to see a turnaround is the next six months, and in the meanwhile continue to defend the dollar against devaluation.
