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HAVANA — Cuba said on Tuesday it plans to allow some stores to sell domestic appliances and other goods in U.S. dollars, as the country struggles to get to grips with a black market of so-called mules who purchase goods abroad to sell door-to-door.

Vice President Salvador Valdes Mesa said 77 stores across the country would begin selling appliances and other goods for dollars at the end of the month.

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“We hope to increase the offer of domestic appliances most in demand: electric motorcycles, flatscreen TVs, air conditioners and spare parts for cars,” Valdes Mesa said during a nationally televised round table with various ministers.

Cuba’s inefficient state-run economy is facing a crisis due to the implosion of ally Venezuela’s economy and the tightening of the decades-old U.S. trade embargo under President Donald Trump.

The government granted pay raises to many state employees and pensioners in July to stimulate demand. It also slapped price controls on many products and said it would work to increase local production to meet increased demand.