Shortages, inflation frustrate Cubans struggling to get by

By ANDREA RODRÍGUEZ
Associated Press

Grocery shopping has become an increasingly costly and arduous struggle for many people in Cuba. The pandemic, inefficient production, government controls and U.S. economic sanctions have aggravated an economic crisis. A drastic drop in crucial tourism income caused by COVID-19 helped spur the government last year to adopt reforms it had long considered. Those included elimination of an inefficient dual currency system . But adoption of a single currency for all, along with shortages, led within a few months to sharply increased prices for many goods that weren’t matched by the simultaneous rise in salaries.