FINANCIAL TIMES: El bolívar ha entrado en “modo de caída libre”

De acuerdo con el diario especializado en economía y mercados, Financial Times, el bolívar ha entrado en “modo de caída libre”.

Reporta el diario, en una nota publicada esta tarde, que la moneda venezolana ha perdido el 43% de su valor durante el último mes, rompió la marca de 500 Bs./USD a principios de julio, y rebasó los 600 hace apenas una semana.

El diario estima que la moneda venezolana impactará muy pronto la barrera de los 700 bolívares/dólar.

El Financial Times subraya que el bolívar se cotiza ahora en el mercado negro a menos de una centésima parte de su valor oficial de 6,3 por dólar: “Esto hace patente la creciente incapacidad de Nicolás Maduro, presidente de Venezuela, para estabilizar el rápido deterioro de la economía del país”

Trasnacionales que aún operan en Venezuela, como American Airlines y Coca-Cola FEMSA (embotelladora mexicana) han sido las últimas en encender sus alarmas, reporta el diario.

A continuación el texto original de la nota en inglés del diario Financial Times:

Venezuela’s currency is entering free fall mode.

Having tumbled beyond the 500 per dollar mark in the black market at the start of the month, and then the 600 mark just eight days later, the bolivar is now within sight of crashing through the 700 barrier.

The so-called bolívar “fuerte” – or strong bolivar – hit a new low of 683.26 per dollar on the black market on Monday, according to dolartoday.com, the rate tracking website that has become the unofficial reference for checking the Venezuelan currency.

This means the bolivar’s value on the black market is now less than a hundredth of the main government rate of 6.3 bolivares to the dollar – and underscores the growing inability of Nicolas Maduro, Venezuela’s president, to stabilise the country’s fast deteriorating economy.

The currency has lost 43 per cent of its value over the past month, as a fresh dive in global oil prices squeezes government finances and drains foreign reserves.

Meanwhile, price increases are seen by economists to be approaching hyperinflation territory as the government cranks up the printing press to pay its expenses.

Russ Dallen, managing partner at Caracas Capital Markets said:

[The bolivar’s collapse] is really just a reflection of the sentiment on the street. There are too many bolivars chasing too few dollars.

Venezuela’s money supply has expanded 85 per cent over past year, said Mr Dallen, citing Venezuelan central bank data.

The bolivar’s implosion has been wreaking havoc on big multinationals that are still doing business in the country.

American Airlines and Coca-Cola Femsa, the Mexican bottler, became the latest to sound the alarm last week.

The US airline, which has already been cutting its service to Venezuela, warned that there’s a risk of further losses on the $629m in cash it has in bolivars.

Femsa meanwhile said a move to reduce the value of its revenue from Venezuela by 95 per cent has wiped out its sales and profit gains for the year to date.

Noticiero Digital