By IANS
Caracas : Riding on the surge of oil revenue, Venezuela is poised to register a growth rate of 12 per cent with the gross domestic product (GDP) reaching past $200 billion this year, Spanish news agency EFE reported Monday.
Planning Minister Jorge Giordani Sunday said the South American nation’s oil wealth was now being used to boost domestic economy and noted that 17 per cent of the projected GDP would come from oil revenue.
“That income is going toward paying a social debt, accumulated over many years, via investments and improvements in basic conditions,” the minister said.
“One of the achievements of President Chavez is having rescued the oil income, which this year will account for 17 percent of the $200 billion GDP,” Giordani said.
The planning minister said the government’s economic policy “is reflected on economic growth of more than 12 percent during the last four years, something unmatched in the world.”
Venezuela, the world’s No. 6 oil exporter and a key supplier to the US, has benefited from the run-up in oil prices over the past few years.