Friday, December 5, 2008

Venezuela’s annual inflation rate fell to a four-month low in November

Venezuela’s annual inflation rate fell to a four-month low in November as an economic slowdown curtailed consumption in the oil-dependent economy.
Consumer prices rose 32.7 percent in November from a year earlier, according to the central bank’s benchmark Caracas price index, trailing the 33.1 percent median forecast from 8 economists in a Bloomberg survey. The monthly inflation rate was 2.1 percent.

“Aggregate demand has decelerated very sharply after growing double-digits in previous years,” Oscar Carvallo, chief economist at BBVA Banco Provincial in Caracas, said. “This confirms our estimates that we’re in the midst of a strong deceleration which will relieve pressure on inflation.”

Venezuela, the biggest oil exporter in the Western Hemisphere, is bracing for slower growth next year and a possible devaluation that would spur consumer prices. Export revenue may contract as lower oil prices curb imports.

Monthly inflation as measured by the central bank’s new national consumer price index, which monitor prices across the country, was 2.3 percent in November.

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