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The Cuban comedian Ulises Toirac shared an analysis on Facebook about the importance of the private sector in the national economy and how it directly influences the value of the Cuban peso.
Toirac recalled that the private sector in Cuba—mainly small and medium-sized enterprises (mipymes) and other similar actors—represented about 55% of the country's retail sales in 2024.
Although this data is from a year ago, the actor claims that the expansion of small and medium-sized enterprises (mipymes) in 2025 has been significant, so their current contribution is "substantially more."
The actor explained how the Cuban citizen turns to micro, small, and medium-sized enterprises (mipymes) to acquire products that are scarce in the state market, citing salt as an example, which is purchased on the international market with foreign currency.
"If they're sold in Cuban pesos, there's no 'change' in the currency used for the purchase. The Cuban peso does not exist in the international currency market. Boom! It has to be exchanged here," he pointed out.
The comment clarifies that to make such changes, the new floating rate adopted by the government for currency exchange applicable to the micro, small, and medium enterprises (mipymes) is applied.
But Ulises is clear about one thing: before that measure, -and they are likely still doing it- small and medium-sized enterprises turned to the informal market to obtain foreign currency for their operations.
"In other words, the one who sells chicken, salt, rice, etc., exchanges the Cuban peso significantly in the same market as you," she pointed out.
All of that process, which begins with the purchase of salt in Spain and adds "a profit, expenses, and the exchange rate," results in the final product arriving to the Cuban buyer at a significantly inflated price.
Next, Ulises touches on the sore spot and suggests -without stating it explicitly- what the solution to the problem would be.
After clarifying that salt production in Cuba is not affected by U.S. sanctions, he explained how it is obtained: "Inverted terraces are made along the coast. The tide comes in, the water enters, the tide goes out, the water evaporates, leaving the salt, which is then swept up, loaded onto a truck, and... off it goes."
Cuba, he noted, has one of the longest coastlines per area of territory in the world. "We have coast to make mash... or salt in this case."
"If you PRODUCE the salt, you eliminate a thousand expenses, outlays, conversions (and distortions) that would cause the salt to reach the counter at a price of... salt. This would mean that your salary would be enough to buy salt. In other words, the peso with which you are paid acquires value. That’s it. End of story," he concluded.
"However...", he concluded.
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