Photo: ANPP

By Roberto Morejon

Cuba began a tense year in the economic sphere, the same as the previous one, although a modest takeoff is expected in some indicators, such as electricity generation.

The gross domestic product of the largest of the Antilles should not have grown in 2024, even without definitive statistics, in a period with accentuated fuel deficits and up to three total disconnections of the electrical energy system.

With the tightening of the U.S. blockade, the punishment of two hurricanes and two earthquakes in the eastern region, the country had to allocate additional resources to mitigate significant damage.

Although production and services were significantly affected by the aforementioned causes and socio-economic welfare was affected, the still high fiscal deficit was moderately reduced.

From a forecast at the beginning of 2024 of almost 147 billion pesos, the final account behaved better than planned, with a reduction of more than 57 billion pesos.

The authorities of the largest of the Antilles are also making progress in controlling the deep imbalances in the financial sphere, and there is also a decline in inflation, which is close to 30 percent, which is still high.

Experts say that the downward trend in inflation has been chained for the third consecutive year.

In this context, the application of adjustments to the tax system in 2025 by modifying the progressive scale for calculating the additional personal income tax assessment is noteworthy.

We are talking about a tax system in which the tax rate increases according to the taxpayer's income.

It is expected that in this way the state and municipal budgets will be strengthened and more funds will be available for solving the problems of the population.

In the last report of the delegates of the People's Power, the voters mentioned the outdated supply and the divisions in the retail trade, the prices of the products, the public transport, the water supply, the situation of the hydraulic networks, as well as roads and housing.

The latent difficulties make it more difficult to address all the problems, but with the expected recovery of the electric energy system and the implementation of a plan to correct what the government describes as distortions, it is expected a slight recovery of the economy and to allocate some items to what generates more concern.