Planning and Development Minister Haiman El-Troudi: Venezuela's economy needs investment from the private sector to keep expanding

Venezuela's economy, which grew at its slowest pace in more than four years in the first quarter, needs investment from the private sector to keep expanding, Planning and Development Minister Haiman El-Troudi said. Arguments that companies are afraid to invest because of government takeovers are ``political,'' El-Troudi said today in comments broadcast by state television. President Hugo Chavez is only interested in nationalizing ``strategic sectors'' of the economy, he said. ``The productive sector of the economy should be confident that economic policies are encouraging them to try to improve output,'' El-Troudi said. Venezuela's economy expanded 4.8 percent in the first quarter, the slowest pace since 2003, as investment fell 1.8 percent, the central bank said May 27. The deceleration came even as prices for oil, Venezuela's top export, surged to a record. El-Troudi said the government won't modify its 6 percent forecast for growth included in this year's budget. Since he was re-elected in 2006, Chavez has tapped surging revenue from sales of crude oil to increase state control of the economy, announcing nationalizations in the telecommunications, electricity, steel, coal and cement industries.