One of the world’s most profitable drugs, cocaine, handles about $ 50 billion in the second report released Wednesday by the UNODC (United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime), connected to the UN (United Nations).

The analysis of the Executive Director of UNODC, Antonio Costa, is that while the indices of purity and number of apprehensions – in major consuming countries such a s United States and Brazil – are decreasing, prices are increasing, and consumption patterns are changing. “This may help explain the terrible increase in rates of violence in countries like Mexico. In Central America, the cartels are competing in a market slowdown,” said Costa.

The document was launched in Washington (USA) and has 314 pages. It was drafted by the International Day against Drug Abuse and Trafficking, recalled on Friday (26).
The document indicates that the production of cocaine in 2008 was 845 tonnes, the lowest in five years.

The determining factor for the drop was the decline of production in Colombia, a country that produces half of cocaine in the world. There was a 18% reduction in cultivation and a 28% reduction in the production of drugs, compared to 2007. The counterpart is that emerging markets of the drug, such as Peru and Bolivia, are increasing their production.

Via: UOL.