Venezuela/

Venezuela remains highly dependent on oil revenues, which account for roughly 95% of export earnings, about 55% of the federal budget revenues, and around 30% of GDP. A nationwide strike between December 2002 and February 2003 had far-reaching economic consequences - real GDP declined by around 9% in 2002 and 8% in 2003 - but economic output since then has recovered strongly. Fueled by high oil prices, record government spending helped to boost GDP by about 10% in 2006, 8% in 2007, and nearly 5% in 2008, before a sharp drop in oil prices caused a contraction in 2009-10. This spending, combined with recent minimum wage hikes and improved access to domestic credit, has created a consumption boom but has come at the cost of higher inflation - roughly 32% in 2008, and slowing only slightly to 30% in 2010, despite the lengthy downturn. Imports also jumped significantly before the recession of 2009. President Hugo CHAVEZ’s continued efforts to increase the government’s control of the economy by nationalizing firms in the agribusiness, financial, construction, oil, and steel sectors have hurt the private investment environment, reduced productive capacity, and slowed non-petroleum exports. In the first half of 2010 Venezuela faced the prospect of lengthy nationwide blackouts when its main hydroelectric power plant - which provides more than 35% of the country’s electricity - nearly shut down. In January, 2010, CHAVEZ announced a dual exchange rate system for the bolivar and closed the unofficial foreign exchange market - the “parallel” market - in an effort to stem inflation and slow the currency’s depreciation. The foreign exchange system offers a 2.6 bolivar per dollar rate for imports of essentials, including food, medicine, and industrial machinery, and a 4.3 bolivar per dollar rate for imports of other products, including cars and telephones.

$344.2 billion (2010 est.)

$354.1 billion (2009 est.)

$366.2 billion (2008 est.)

$285.2 billion (2010 est.)

-2.8% (2010 est.)

-3.3% (2009 est.)

4.8% (2008 est.)

$12,600 (2010 est.)

$13,200 (2009 est.)

$13,900 (2008 est.)

13.3 million (2010 est.)

12.1% (2010 est.)

7.9% (2009 est.)

37.9% (yearend 2005 est.)

41 (2009)

49.5 (1998)

16.4% of GDP (2010 est.)

25.5% of GDP (2010 est.)

18% of GDP (2009 est.)

29.8% (2010 est.)

27.1% (2009 est.)

29.5% (31 December 2009)

33.5% (31 December 2008)

19.89% (31 December 2009 est.)

22.37% (31 December 2008 est.)

$69.36 billion (31 December 2010 est)

$93.19 billion (31 December 2009 est)

$78.11 billion (31 December 2010 est.)

$107 billion (31 December 2009 est.)

$54.22 billion (31 December 2010 est.)

$75.87 billion (31 December 2009 est.)

$NA (31 December 2008)

$NA (31 December 2007)

$8.251 billion (31 December 2006)

corn, sorghum, sugarcane, rice, bananas, vegetables, coffee; beef, pork, milk, eggs; fish

petroleum, construction materials, food processing, textiles; iron ore mining, steel, aluminum; motor vehicle assembly

-8% (2010 est.)

113.3 billion kWh (2007 est.)

83.02 billion kWh (2007 est.)

540 million kWh (2007 est.)

1.651 billion kWh (2007 est.)

2.472 million bbl/day (2009 est.)

740,000 bbl/day (2009 est.)

2.182 million bbl/day (2007 est.)

0 bbl/day (2007 est.)

97.77 billion bbl (1 January 2010 est.)

23.06 billion cu m (2009 est.)

24.86 billion cu m (2009 est.)

0 cu m (2008 est.)

1.8 billion cu m (2009 est.)

4.983 trillion cu m (1 January 2010 est.)

$22.07 billion (2010 est.)

$8.561 billion (2009 est.)

$64.87 billion (2010 est.)

$57.6 billion (2009 est.)

petroleum, bauxite and aluminum, minerals, chemicals, agricultural products, basic manufactures

US 35.18%, Netherlands Antilles 8.56%

$31.37 billion (2010 est.)

$38.44 billion (2009 est.)

agricultural products, raw materials, machinery and equipment, transport equipment, construction materials

US 23.66%, Colombia 14.43%, Brazil 9.13%, China 8.44%, Mexico 5.47% (2009)

$29.49 billion (31 December 2010 est.)

$35 billion (31 December 2009 est.)

$55.61 billion (31 December 2010 est.)

$53.58 billion (31 December 2009 est.)

$37.71 billion (31 December 2010 est.)

$41.21 billion (31 December 2009 est.)

$20.97 billion (31 December 2010 est.)

$17.67 billion (31 December 2009 est.)

bolivars (VEB) per US dollar - 4.3039 (2010), 2.1522 (2009), 2.147 (2008), 2,147 (2007), 2,147 (2006)