![]() | This article needs to be updated.(April 2023) |
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Currency | Bolívar Digital (VES) |
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Calendar year | |
Trade organizations | WTO, OPEC, Unasur, ALBA |
Statistics | |
Population | ![]() |
GDP | |
GDP rank | |
GDP growth |
|
GDP per capita | |
GDP per capita rank | |
GDP by sector |
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Population below poverty line | |
39 medium (2011)[4] | |
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Labor force | ![]() |
Labor force by occupation |
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Unemployment | ![]() |
Main industries | Petroleum, construction materials, food processing, iron ore mining, steel, aluminum; motor vehicle assembly, real estate, tourism and ecotourism |
External | |
Exports | ![]() |
Export goods | Petroleum, chemicals, agricultural products and basic manufactures |
Main export partners | |
Imports | $9.1 billion (2017)[13] |
Import goods | Food, clothing, cars, technological items, raw materials, machinery and equipment, transport equipment and construction material |
Main import partners | |
FDI stock | |
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Gross external debt | ![]() |
Public finances | |
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−46.1% (of GDP) (2017 est.)[4] | |
Revenues | 92.8 billion (2017 est.)[4] |
Expenses | 189.7 billion (2017 est.)[4] |
Standard & Poor's:[14] SD (domestic) SD (foreign) Outlook: negative Fitch:[16] CC (domestic) RD (foreign) Outlook: negative | |
All values, unless otherwise stated, are in US dollars. |
The economy of Venezuela is based primarily on petroleum,[4][18] as the country holds the largest crude oil supply in the world.[19] Venezuela was historically among the wealthiest economies in South America, particularly from the 1950s to 1980s.[20] During the 21st century, under the leadership of socialist populist Hugo Chávez and his successor Nicolás Maduro, the Venezuelan economy has collapsed, prompting millions of citizens to flee Venezuela. GDP has fallen by 80 percent in less than a decade.[20][21] The economy is characterized by corruption, good shortages, unemployment, mismanagement of the oil sector, and since 2014, hyperinflation.[19][22]
Venezuela is the 25th largest producer of oil in the world and the 8th largest member of OPEC. Venezuela also manufactures and exports heavy industry products such as steel, aluminum, and cement. Other notable manufacturing includes electronics and automobiles as well as beverages and foodstuffs. Agriculture in Venezuela accounts for approximately 4.7% of GDP, 7.3% of the labor force and at least one-fourth of Venezuela's land area.[4] Venezuela exports rice, corn, fish, tropical fruit, coffee, pork and beef. Venezuela has an estimated US$14.3 trillion worth[23] of natural resources and is not self-sufficient in most areas of agriculture. Exports accounted for 16.7% of GDP and petroleum products accounted for about 95% of those exports.[24]
Since the 1920s, Venezuela has been a rentier state, offering oil as its main export.[25] From the 1950s to the early 1980s, the Venezuelan economy experienced a steady growth that attracted many immigrants, with the nation enjoying the highest standard of living in Latin America. The situation reversed when oil prices collapsed during the 1980s. Hugo Chavez became president in 1999 and implemented a form of socialism (the Bolivarian Revolution) that resulted in the collapse or nationalization of many Venezuelan businesses, and purged the state-run PDVSA oil company, replacing thousands of workers with political supporters with no technical expertise.[20] The Chavez administration also imposed stringent currency controls in 2003 in an attempt to prevent capital flight.[26] These actions resulted in a decline in oil production and exports and a series of stern currency devaluations.[27]
Price controls and expropriation of numerous farmlands and various industries are government policies along with a near-total freeze on any access to foreign currency at reasonable "official" exchange rates. These have resulted in severe shortages in Venezuela and steep price rises of all common goods, including food, water, household products, spare parts, tools and medical supplies; forcing many manufacturers to either cut production or close down, with many ultimately abandoning the country as has been the case with several technological firms and most automobile makers.[28][29]
Venezuela's economy has been in a state of total economic collapse since 2013.[30] In 2015, Venezuela had over 100% inflation—the highest in the world and the highest in the country's history at that time.[31] According to independent sources, the rate increased to 80,000% at the end of 2018[32] with Venezuela spiraling into hyperinflation[33] while the poverty rate was nearly 90 percent of the population.[34] On 14 November 2017, credit rating agencies declared that Venezuela was in default with its debt payments, with Standard & Poor's categorizing Venezuela as being in "selective default".[35][36]
The United States has been Venezuela's most important trading partner despite the strained relations between the two countries. American exports to Venezuela have included machinery, agricultural products, medical instruments and cars. Venezuela is one of the top four suppliers of foreign oil to the United States. About 500 American companies are represented in Venezuela.[37] According to the Central Bank of Venezuela, between 1998 and 2008 the government received around US$325 billion through oil production and exports in general.[17] According to the International Energy Agency (as of August 2015), the production of 2.4 million barrels per day supplied 500,000 barrels to the United States.[18] A report published by Transparencia Venezuela in 2022 estimated that illegal activities in the country made up around 21% of its GDP.[38][39][40]
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Traditionnellement, le pétrole représente plus de 95% des exportations du Venezuela. Le pays exporte aussi du fer, de la bauxite et de l'aluminium, des produits agricoles, des produits semi-manufacturés, des véhicules et des produits chimiques. Les principaux clients du Venezuela sont la Chine, l'Inde et Singapour. Le pays importe des produits manufacturés et de luxe, des machines et des équipements pour le secteur des transports, du matériel de construction et des produits pharmaceutiques. Les principaux fournisseurs du Venezuela sont les Etats-Unis, la Chine et le Brésil.
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