Venezuela: Record growth, but the crisis drags on

Venezuela: Record economic growth, but the crisis shows no sign of easing

A month and a half after Nicolás Maduro's disappearance, official figures are claiming victory: 6.65% growth in the second quarter of 2025 and 19 consecutive quarters of expansion, according to the Central Bank of Venezuela and the Ministry of National Commerce. Yet those on the ground paint a different picture: emigration continues, basic goods remain scarce and skepticism dominates the debate.

On paper, the macro numbers are hard to fault: record output, sustained growth. But the contrast with everyday life is stark. While official reports speak of recovery, comments circulate on social media such as "they're still in the shit" or "in twenty years everything will be the same." It's the bitter irony of people who can't eat GDP. Venezuelans keep arriving in Madrid to buy whole apples, as one observer notes, and the diaspora shows no sign of reversing.

The debate is nothing new. Some argue the Venezuelan economy is under the control of foreign powers and that no country under such control has ever improved. Others claim the real target is Cuba, not Venezuela. But the numbers, however real, don't tell the full story of a country that still sees no light at the end of the tunnel.

Judging by the macro data alone, anyone would say the country is rising from the dead. But those who left aren't coming back, and those who stayed know that, as someone put it, in twenty years everything will be the same. Or worse.