Venezuelan Economy Receives Lowest IMF Ranking in Decades

The Venezuelan economy now ranks seventh in Latin America, with a GDP half the size of neighboring Colombia, according to the International Monetary Fund (IMF).+ The IMF concluded its 2015 Annual Meetings in Lima, Peru, on October 11, with a grim outlook for Latin American economies.+ According to the IMF, Peru has surpassed Venezuela with a GDP of US$179 billion. “Dependency on petroleum and the lack of productive alternatives” have caused the Venezuelan economy to plummet, writes the Spanish daily El País. In the 1990s, Venezuela was Latin America’s fourth largest economy, behind Brazil, Mexico, and Argentina. However, after several years of a Chavista administration, the country’s debt has increased significantly. More…