Symbol of the Central Bank of Venezuela. Photo: Dagne Buschbeck/File photo.
Caracas (OrinocoTribune.com)—According to the Central Bank of Venezuela (BCV), Venezuela’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) has registered an increase of 7.14% during the second quarter of 2026 compared to the same period of 2025. With this result, Venezuelan economic activity has now successfully accumulated 21 consecutive quarters of positive growth.
The Venezuelan monetary authority reported via social media this Tuesday, August 18, that during the second quarter, the oil sector saw a notable expansion of 9.10%. Meanwhile, the non-oil sector registered a 5.79% increase, “driven by the availability of foreign currency allocated to domestic production and the interaction of the various productive sectors.”
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The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) estimated a 6.5% increase in Venezuela’s GDP by the end of 2026. The UN agency’s semi-annual report, released on August 12, noted that the oil sector reached an average production of 1.09 million barrels per day (bpd), accompanied by a boost in trade, a figure already surpassed by the Venezuelan oil workers.
Despite these positive figures and forecast, many Venezuelans are reporting unhappiness about their own economic situation, which does not align with the macroeconomic figures. Most of these complaints are related to the high inflation attached to the sharp devaluation of the bolivar and the low workers’ income.
On Tuesday, the vice president of Petróleos de Venezuela (PDVSA), Jovanny Martínez, informed that so far this year, Venezuelan crude exports have increased by 19.7%, as reported by local media.
Martínez stated that Venezuela’s oil production could reach 1.245 million bpd by the end of August, during his participation in an event in Houston in the US settler entity. This figure seems aligned with what many experts agree might be the end-of-year output, which would be 1.35 million bpd.
The PDVSA top executive also said that the Venezuelan refineries must be improved, modernized, and expanded, while highlighting that national fuel production has increased by 12.9% so far in 2026, supplying 5.4% more fuel to the domestic market.
On Monday, the president of the National Association of Supermarkets and Self-Service Stores (ANSA), Ítalo Atencio, stated that between January and July 2026, there has been a 21% growth in consumption at supermarket chains in the country.
During an interview with Venezolana de Televisión (VTV), he added that supermarket openings have continued across the country. “As of yesterday, 26 new stores have opened nationwide,” he reported, adding that basic consumer goods are those that have seen the greatest price increases.
He also noted that according to a census of establishments in La Guaira state up to August 16, “34% of the establishments are operational,” and that following the June 24 earthquakes, “35% are in the process of review because the structure suffered and another 34% are not in the capacity to reopen in the short term.”
In a worrisome announcement, Atencio also reported that in the affiliated grocery stores currently 70% of the products are of national production and 30% are imported.
Some analysts claim that this itself is not a negative indicator; however, compared to previous figures wherein more than 90% of products were consistently of national production, it hints at a threat that an increasing availability of foreign currency together with the partial lifting of illegal US sanctions could revert this major achievement and set about the dismantling of the economic success and sovereignty of Chavismo.
Special for Orinoco Tribune by staff
OT/JRE/AU
