The Daily Journal.- Acting President Delcy Rodríguez said Monday that the gap between Venezuela’s official exchange rate and the parallel market rate fell from nearly 30% to 12.3% over the past two months as a result of the government’s policies.
“We are also reducing the exchange rate gap. Over these two months, we have brought it down from nearly 30% to 12.3%,” Rodríguez said.
“Behind that number lies something very concrete: a family can better organize its expenses and make its income go further, a business owner can set prices with greater certainty, and a company can plan and invest,” she added.
The narrowing of the gap comes, however, amid a sharp depreciation of the bolívar. The official exchange rate rose from 301.37 bolívares per dollar at the beginning of 2026 to 784.6633 bolívares as of August 24, representing a 160.4% increase in the price of the dollar and an approximately 61.6% depreciation of the bolívar against the U.S. currency.
The Central Bank of Venezuela (BCV) has sought to narrow the gap between the official and parallel exchange rates mainly by increasing the supply of foreign currency, accelerating adjustments to the official exchange rate, and restricting liquidity and credit. During the first half of 2026, the BCV reportedly injected nearly US$9 billion into the foreign exchange market, almost twice the amount recorded during the same period in 2025.
