Venezuela's exports to the United States, mainly oil, rose 770 percent in 2023 from the previous year after Washington eased some sanctions against the country, according to a report Monday by the US-based business chamber, AFP reported.
Total trade more than doubled in 2023 to more than $6 billion, the Venezuelan-American Chamber of Commerce and Industry said.
The figures are still far from the high of $38 billion recorded in 2008, when the US was the South American country's biggest customer of crude oil, according to the chamber.
Washington has stepped up sanctions against Venezuela since the 2018 re-election of President Nicolás Maduro - widely seen as a fraud - to a second consecutive term.
Last year, Maduro's government and the Venezuelan opposition agreed to hold free and fair elections in 2024, attended by observers. The vote has since been scheduled for July 28.
The deal prompted Washington to ease sanctions against the oil-rich country, allowing US-based Chevron to resume limited crude output amid efforts to keep global oil prices low as the West sanctions Russia over its war in Ukraine .
The chamber's report, based on statistics from the US Census Bureau, indicated that Venezuelan exports to the US increased by 770% in 2023.
Oil exports make up 90.85% of the total volume.
Imports from the United States rose more than 10% to $2.5 billion. /BGNES
