than-expected 7 percent in the first quarter of 2005. A key factor in the Cuban government's optimism has been an agreement signed in December with Venezuela's populist president, Hugo Chavez, in which his oil-rich nation began to pay for medical services provided by some 30,000 Cuban doctors working in Venezuelan slums, Soberon said. While the figures are a state secret, analysts believe the health services are covering a substantial part of Cuba's $1 billion annual bill for oil imports, mainly supplied by Venezuela under a generous 53,000 barrel per day supply deal. --MORE 2335 Local Time 2035 GMT
