
Venezuela’s Currency Circus
In a faraway land, an eccentric king nailed an edict to the door of his palace that said: “Henceforth, $20 bills will be sold here for $1.”
Within minutes, his subjects were clamoring for those cut-rate twenties. So the king posted a second edict: “Each $20 bill shall be used only to buy things abroad.” Then a third: “Whatever you buy abroad with your $20 you must sell in our kingdom for $2.”
“This will make me beloved!” he thought. “Foreign goods will be cheap for all.”
But it didn’t work out that way. Soon, the lines for $20 bills were matched by lines at every store that sold foreign goods.… Seguir leyendo »