Venezuela currency weakens 10 percent in three days on black market

Reuters ^ | November 30, 2016 | Brian Ellsworth and Anggy Polanco

[C19fan]

Venezuela's bolivar currency tumbled past the psychological barrier of 4,000 per dollar on the black market on Wednesday, racking up a 10 percent depreciation since Monday and fueling concerns about the crisis-stricken OPEC nation's economy.

The black market rate has weakened 62 percent this month amid Soviet-style product shortages and a crippling recession that have become the norm in Venezuela's steadily unraveling socialist economy.

[C19fan]

According to a site linked by HotAir, Maduro has been running the money printing presses 24/7 increasing the money in circulation by over 200% in Oct/Nov. Part of it is maybe to get the economy a drug high for the Christmas season. http://hotair.com/archives/2016/12/01/hyperinflation-venezuelas-currency-devalued-10-this-week/

[tanuki]

Right now on DolarToday, the Bolivar is falling like a rock. Just a week ago, it hit 3,000 to the dollar. Today, it’s over 4,500.

[Paladin2]

Castro and Hugo Still Dead!

[RockyTx]

I give up

what is the exchange rate?

thanks

Rocky

[mlo]

"...fueling concerns about the crisis-stricken OPEC nation's economy"

Oh, NOW they're concerned! LOL

[lurk]

When you find the national currency available for bottom-end use beside the toilet, you know your socialist model just isn’t working out.

[econjack]

Hard to believe that even a Socialist gov't could screw things up this badly. Lake Maracaibo is a thin veneer of water on an ocean of oil and they still couldn't get it right. The reason: A planned economy. Correction: A badly planned economy. Any person or body that thinks they can solve a billion simultaneous equations per second like a free market can is deluded and Venezuela is a living example of the result.

[PGR88]

In effect, Venezuela has no currency. Their collectivist corruptocrats have destroyed it.

I have read about societies where nearly all social and civil trust is gone, yet vacuums still tend to get filled.

I wonder how Venezuelans are transacting daily life now? using US Dollars? Gold? Barter?

Here is a social-sciences experiment reaching its conclusion. I wish every Ivy League university would send their entire social-sciences graduate students to Venezuela to really learn what they BS about on paper.

[Billthedrill]

I wonder how Venezuelans are transacting daily life now? using US Dollars? Gold? Barter?

Yes to all three. This guy who runs Dolar Today must be running as hard as he can just to keep up. These guys tried to shut him down in court. Suit dismissed.

It's a classic lesson for anyone who wants to learn why command economies don't work. Not a single one of Bernie's people believe a word of it, though.

[rjsimmon]

Hyper-inflation is generally a precursor to war. The collapse of a currency is similarly a causal factor. With no tangible source to tie their currency to, the value can plummet due to any political/economic/social factor.

Venezuela will be in a civil war within the year, or possibly a local war with a neighboring state.

[Chode]