Weekly Report - 23 January 2014 (WR-14-03)

Rafael Ramírez, the long serving energy minister and president of the state oil company Petróleos de Venezuela (Pdvsa), and since last year also vice-president for economic affairs, announced this week another new ‘reform’ of the officially controlled exchange rate regime. Though Ramírez did not say as much, the government looks to be moving towards more of a formalised dual exchange rate regime, with one rate for imports of designated essential goods and another for all other imports.