It's Official - Venezuela Has Plunged Into Recession

© AFP/File Lissy de AbreuAn oil drilling rig in Anzoategui, Venezuela, pictured on January 24, 2012

Caracas (AFP) - Venezuela confirmed Tuesday that its economy has entered recession, contracting for three consecutive quarters from January through September, while inflation hit 63.6 percent in the 12 months to November.

The South American oil giant's economy shrank 2.3 percent in the third quarter, the central bank said, after contracting 4.8 percent in the first quarter and 4.9 percent in the second. Inflation, whose figures had not been released since August, meanwhile hit a monthly rate of 4.7 percent in November.