President of the Venezuelan Confederation of Industries (Conindustria), Eduardo Garmendia, stated the sale of vehicles in US dollars would be made at the rate set by the Foreign Exchange Marginal System (Simadi). He added that buyers would have to explain the origin of funds in dollars to prevent money laundering.

"Everything will be (traded) at the Simadi forex rate, including the payment of the value-added tax (VAT). Operations will be in bolivars, but (auto) parts and other raw materials will be (traded) in US dollars," Garmendia said during an interview aired on radio station Unión Radio.

The head of Conindustria termed the measure an "interesting solution" to the problems the local car sector faces. However, he said he did not expect an important volume of sales through this mechanism due to difficulties to access foreign currency.

El Universal