Amid today’s total economic collapse, any internal insights into the financial situation are hard to come by. And, unless some kind of regime change takes place, the IMF will probably remain shut out of any opportunity to scrutinise the country’s finances.

Venezuelans have one hope to hold on to, though: oil, which accounts for roughly 95 per cent of its export earnings and a sizeable portion of its GDP. The country, whose economy David Carruthers at Credit Benchmark says “barely exists as a functioning entity,” is blessed with the world’s largest oil reserves, topping not only Saudi Arabia (SAR) and Iran (IRR), but also Iraq (IQD), Kuwait (KWD) and Russia (RUB).

David Carruthers, Credit Benchmark Head of Research, in an article on the economic crisis in Venezuela.

By Colby Smith, February 20 2019, Financial Times.

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