Venezuela raises fuel prices by more than 6,000%

(Oil Price) In a televised-address on February 17, Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro delivered some crushing news to his country.

To address the fiscal crisis facing the country, the government decided to raise fuel prices by more than 6,000 percent. While that may sound dramatic, it will still leave Venezuela with some of the cheapest fuel in the world. Prices for 95 octane gasoline at the pump will jump from 0.097 bolivars to 6 bolivars. It was the first increase in fuel prices in 20 years.

Also, Maduro devalued the currency, shifting the official exchange rate from 6.3 bolivars per dollar to 10. That rate will remain fixed while a second exchange rate will float. The black market rate is wildly disconnected from the official exchange rate, with one dollar fetching as many as 1,000 bolivars as the world’s worst inflation takes its toll.

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