(1 Jun 2020) Venezuelans are now able to buy gasoline at international market prices, marking a historic break in the socialist country's practice of having the world's cheapest fuel.
President Nicolás Maduro said that as of Monday, 200 filling stations across the nation will allow drivers to fuel up for the equivalent of 50 cents a liter, or $1.90 US dollars a gallon.
Venezuelans will also be able to buy a limited amount of subsidized gasoline each month, paying 2.5 cents a liter, or 9 US cents a gallon.
The government will continue to pay for all fuel used by public transportation, Maduro said.
People on Monday continued to form long lines to fill their vehicles and motorcycles.
So far, the authorities have not informed how much fuel is available to supply the country, which had a demand of about 127,000 barrels per day before the quarantine.
The government last week received five tankers from Iran with some 1.5 million barrels of gasoline and additives to cover the shortage.
Venezuela has the world's largest underground oil reserves, but it has been forced to buy fuel from Iran to bridge deep shortages, unable to pump crude from the ground and turn it into gasoline.
For decades, the oil nation has had the cheapest gasoline in the world that sold for less than 10 cents a liter, but in recent months, due to the severe shortage, it began to trade on the black market for between 2 and 3 dollars a liter, well above international prices.
To prevent the sharp increase in gasoline from impacting inflation, the government set a 100% subsidy for cargo and public transportation, but analysts predict that the dual pricing scheme will stimulate a black fuel market that will end up impacting the economy price of most goods.
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