Embattled President Maduro raises Venezuelan wages to $6.70
Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro is boosting the minimum wage again amid the country's relentless battle against hyperinflation
Venezuela's President Nicolas Maduro gives his annual address to the nation, before members of the Constitutional Assembly inside the National Assembly in Caracas, Venezuela, Monday, Jan. 14, 2019. Venezuela’s economic crisis is deepening, with masses fleeing the country to escape runaway inflation on pace to surpass 23 million percent. (AP Photo/Ariana Cubillos)
CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) -- Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro is boosting the minimum wage again amid the country's relentless battle against hyperinflation.
Maduro presented his economic plans Monday at the start to his second disputed term, with increasing calls for him to give up power in the crisis-wracked country.
Though rich in oil, Venezuela is enduring a historic crisis as citizens struggle to afford basic goods and masses flee the country.
Maduro is raising the minimum wage by 300 percent, bringing monthly salaries to roughly $6.50. It's a step he has taken a dozen times in the last two years.
Maduro says he also intends to dramatically boost oil production.
The president is under heightened pressure from opposition politicians and foreign leaders urging him to step down and return Venezuela to democratic rule.
