Venezuela Economy - 2022

GEOGRAPHICAL NAMES 

Economic overview

Venezuela remains highly dependent on oil revenues, which account for almost all export earnings and nearly half of the government’s revenue, despite a continued decline in oil production in 2017. In the absence of official statistics, foreign experts estimate that GDP contracted 12% in 2017, inflation exceeded 2000%, people faced widespread shortages of consumer goods and medicine, and the central bank's international reserves dwindled. In late 2017, Venezuela also entered selective default on some of its sovereign and state oil company, Petroleos de Venezuela, S.A., (PDVSA) bonds. Domestic production and industry continues to severely underperform and the Venezuelan Government continues to rely on imports to meet its basic food and consumer goods needs.

 

Falling oil prices since 2014 have aggravated Venezuela’s economic crisis. Insufficient access to dollars, price controls, and rigid labor regulations have led some US and multinational firms to reduce or shut down their Venezuelan operations. Market uncertainty and PDVSA’s poor cash flow have slowed investment in the petroleum sector, resulting in a decline in oil production.

 

Under President Nicolas MADURO, the Venezuelan Government’s response to the economic crisis has been to increase state control over the economy and blame the private sector for shortages. MADURO has given authority for the production and distribution of basic goods to the military and to local socialist party member committees. The Venezuelan Government has maintained strict currency controls since 2003. The government has been unable to sustain its mechanisms for distributing dollars to the private sector, in part because it needed to withhold some foreign exchange reserves to make its foreign bond payments. As a result of price and currency controls, local industries have struggled to purchase production inputs necessary to maintain their operations or sell goods at a profit on the local market. Expansionary monetary policies and currency controls have created opportunities for arbitrage and corruption and fueled a rapid increase in black market activity.

Real GDP (purchasing power parity)

$269.068 billion (2018 est.)

$381.6 billion (2017 est.)

$334.751 billion (2017 est.)

note: data are in 2017 dollars

Real GDP growth rate

-19.67% (2018 est.)

-14% (2017 est.)

-15.76% (2017 est.)

Real GDP per capita

$7,704 (2018 est.)

$12,500 (2017 est.)

$9,417 (2017 est.)

note: data are in 2017 dollars

GDP (official exchange rate)

$210.1 billion (2017 est.)

Inflation rate (consumer prices)

146,101.7% (2019 est.)

45,518.1% (2018 est.)

416.8% (2017 est.)

Credit ratings

Fitch rating: RD (2017)

Moody's rating: WR (2019)

Standard & Poors rating: SD (2017)

note: The year refers to the year in which the current credit rating was first obtained.

GDP - composition, by sector of origin

agriculture: 4.7% (2017 est.)

industry: 40.4% (2017 est.)

services: 54.9% (2017 est.)

GDP - composition, by end use

household consumption: 68.5% (2017 est.)

government consumption: 19.6% (2017 est.)

investment in fixed capital: 13.9% (2017 est.)

investment in inventories: 1.7% (2017 est.)

exports of goods and services: 7% (2017 est.)

imports of goods and services: -10.7% (2017 est.)

Agricultural products

sugar cane, maize, milk, rice, plantains, bananas, pineapples, potatoes, beef, poultry

Industries

agricultural products, livestock, raw materials, machinery and equipment, transport equipment, construction materials, medical equipment, pharmaceuticals, chemicals, iron and steel products, crude oil and petroleum products

Industrial production growth rate

-2% (2017 est.)

Labor force

14.21 million (2017 est.)

Labor force - by occupation

agriculture: 7.3%

industry: 21.8%

services: 70.9% (4th quarter, 2011 est.)

Unemployment rate

6.9% (2018 est.)

27.1% (2017 est.)

Youth unemployment rate (ages 15-24)

total: 13.6%

male: 16.8% NA

female: 11.7% (2020 est.) NA

Population below poverty line

33.1% (2015 est.)

Gini Index coefficient - distribution of family income

39 (2011)

49.5 (1998)

Household income or consumption by percentage share

lowest 10%: 1.7%

highest 10%: 32.7% (2006)

Budget

revenues: 92.8 billion (2017 est.)

expenditures: 189.7 billion (2017 est.)

Budget surplus (+) or deficit (-)

-46.1% (of GDP) (2017 est.)

Public debt

38.9% of GDP (2017 est.)

31.3% of GDP (2016 est.)

note: data cover central government debt, as well as the debt of state-owned oil company PDVSA; the data include treasury debt held by foreign entities; the data include some debt issued by subnational entities, as well as intragovernmental debt; intragovernmental debt consists of treasury borrowings from surpluses in the social funds, such as for retirement, medical care, and unemployment; some debt instruments for the social funds are sold at public auctions

Taxes and other revenues

44.2% (of GDP) (2017 est.)

Fiscal year

calendar year

Current account balance

$4.277 billion (2017 est.)

-$3.87 billion (2016 est.)

Exports

$83.401 billion (2018 est.)

$93.485 billion (2017 est.)

Exports - partners

India 34%, China 28%, United States 12%, Spain 6% (2019)

Exports - commodities

crude petroleum, refined petroleum, industrial alcohols, gold, iron (2019)

Imports

$18.432 billion (2018 est.)

$18.376 billion (2017 est.)

Imports - partners

China 28%, United States 22%, Brazil 8%, Spain 6%, Mexico 6%  (2019)

Imports - commodities

refined petroleum, rice, corn, tires, soybean meal, wheat (2019)

Reserves of foreign exchange and gold

$9.661 billion (31 December 2017 est.)

$11 billion (31 December 2016 est.)

Debt - external

$100.3 billion (31 December 2017 est.)

$109.8 billion (31 December 2016 est.)

Exchange rates

bolivars (VEB) per US dollar -

3,345 (2017 est.)

673.76 (2016 est.)

48.07 (2015 est.)

13.72 (2014 est.)

6.284 (2013 est.)

NOTE: The information regarding Venezuela on this page is re-published from the 2022 World Fact Book of the United States Central Intelligence Agency and other sources. No claims are made regarding the accuracy of Venezuela 2022 information contained here. All suggestions for corrections of any errors about Venezuela 2022 should be addressed to the CIA or the source cited on each page.