Chavez Eyes Steel Industry

The gift that keeps on giving, Communist thug Hugo Chavez, now wants to take over the Venezuela steel industry.

President Hugo Chavez has demanded that Venezuela's biggest steelmaker be expropriated - after government efforts to buy a majority stake failed.

Mr Chavez has set his sights on turning Siderurgica del Orinco (Sidor), which was 60%controlled by Luxembourg-based Ternium, into a "socialist company".

Talks to buy Ternium's stake collapsed when the sides could not agree a price.

Venzuela's economy is already starting to crumble under Chavez's brand of Communism. Inflation is double digit and wages are spiraling.

Separately, the president has increased the country's minimum wage by about 30% to offset the impact of inflation caused by the soaring oil price.

The monthly minimum wage at is now $372, which Mr Chavez says is the highest in Latin America.

Note to Hugo: Wages should be based on productivity as valued by the market, not artificially set by some government official.

Chavez continues to ruin every major industry in Venezuela.

Mr Chavez has taken control of foreign owned cement, telecommunications, electricity, oil and gas companies.

There is not much more you can do to ruin a country than this.

Somewhere, Karl Marx is grinning.