Venezuelan oil strike ends

Oil industry trade union leaders in Venezuela say their members will return to work today after a forty-eight hour strike for more pay.

The leader of the biggest union, Felix Jimenez of FEDEPETROL said he was calling off the strike because of what he described as government oppression after troops were deployed in the main oil installations.

He said he would now consult his members to decide what further action to take if their demands for a fifteen percent pay increase were not met.

The Venezuelan government said oil exports were not affected by the stoppage, which it declared illegal.

From the newsroom of the BBC World Service