Venezuela’s inflation rate reached quadruple digits for the first time, according to figures released by the opposition-led Congress and reported by Reuters.
The data released shows consumer prices rising by 1,369 percent between January and November.
The legislature, which this year began publishing its own inflation figures after the government stopped releasing them, said prices rose by 56.7 percent in November and estimated that 2017 inflation would top 2,000 percent.
“More hunger and misery is on the way for our already beaten-down population,” said opposition deputy Angel Alvarado, who presented the report.
The central bank reported inflation of 180 percent and 240 percent in 2015 and 2016, which had been the highest on record. It has since then stopped providing figures.
The crisis in the country who has the biggest oil reserves has been exacerbated by falling oil prices and production fallback, pushing its cash reserves to a record low of nearly $10 billion, the lowest in 20 years.
This strong inflation coincides with a four-year economic recession, coupled with a severe shortage of basic commodities in light of the tightness of hard currency. The mounting financial pressure has forced Venezuela to cut its imports by 80 percent over the past five years.
