Maduro tells lawmakers that inflation in Venezuela will reach 48% year-on-year in 2024

CARACAS (Reuters) – Venezuela’s inflation rate will reach 48 percent annually in 2024, the lowest in 12 years, Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro told lawmakers in an annual address to the National Assembly and other officials on Wednesday, just days after he was inaugurated for a third term. .

Maduro, whose nearly 12-year rule was marked by a deep economic and social crisis and mass migration, was sworn in for a third term on Friday, despite a six-month-long electoral dispute and international calls for him to step down.

The government has used conventional methods to try to curb inflation, which has reached triple digits in recent years, with some success. Inflation reached 189.8% in 2023, according to the Central Bank. Maduro said this month that the economy grew by 9% last year.