Venezuela sold off its gold reserves last year due to an extreme shortage of US dollars

According to data from the official website of the Central Bank of Venezuela, the bank sold nearly 6 tons of gold in the second half of last year. The underlying reason is that the United States imposed restrictions on the country's oil exports, leading Venezuela to face a severe shortage of US dollars. According to estimates by Caracas-based financial consulting firm Sintesis Financiera, these gold sales were mainly concentrated in December. Last year, the Trump administration further tightened restrictions on Venezuela's oil exports and seized the first Venezuelan oil tanker on December 10. This move cut off Venezuela's source of US dollars, causing the gap between the official exchange rate and the parallel exchange rate to reach a historic high, while also increasing the risk of a resurgence of hyperinflation. However, after US special forces arrested Venezuelan President Maduro in January this year, the United States allowed part of Venezuela's oil sales revenue to flow back into the country. This change revitalized the country's official foreign exchange market and narrowed the gap between the official and parallel exchange rates. According to a report released by Sintesis Financiera on Monday, the Central Bank of Venezuela's statements indicate that the country did not appear to conduct any gold sales in January.