Cuba delays Feb. 1 fuel price hike, cites cyberattack

FILE PHOTO: People push a car as the government announced it will hike the retail price of its 94 octane gasoline from 30 to 156 pesos per litre beginning February 1, in Havana, Cuba January 11, 2024. REUTERS/Yander Zamora

HAVANA (Reuters) -Cuba put off an unpopular five-fold increase in gasoline prices planned for Feb. 1 due to a cyberattack, Economy Vice Minister Mildrey Granadillo said on Wednesday, a sudden about-face hours before the hike was to take effect.

"This decision is influenced by the occurrence of a cybersecurity incident in the computer systems for the marketing of fuels, the origin of which has been identified as a virus from abroad," Granadillo said in the final minutes of the midday newscast on state-run TV.