Venezuela has announced measures to "defend" its currency, the bolivar, which lost 17% of its value against the dollar last week. Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro tweeted, "In the face of the criminal dollar attack, I have ordered the economic team to take measures to defend the official rate for a healthy trade that respects people's rights." Last week, the value of the dollar rose from 11.69 to 14.12 bolivars, marking a 17.20% decline in the value of Venezuela's currency, which has been dropping since October 2021.
Several economic analysts noted that the billions of dollars injected by the state into the foreign exchange market to maintain prices have contributed to the continued instability of the bolivar. Leonardo Vera, an economist and professor at the Central University of Venezuela, told AFP that "the central bank's attempt to fix the exchange rate for two years has failed." He pointed out that "the goal was to set an exchange rate somewhat lower than what a balanced exchange rate would be in unfavorable conditions." Vera explained that a tax on large dollar transactions has been imposed to tie the economy to the bolivar while Venezuelans do not trust their currency. The government, for its part, views the depreciation of the bolivar as an "attack" aimed at slowing the country's "growth."
