This month Nicolas Maduro approved a “special Christmas bonus” of £3.20 for some of Venezuela’s poorer households

Prices of basic items in Venezuela are rising so fast that an egg now costs more than a worker on the minimum wage can earn in a day.

The country already has the world’s highest inflation rate and next year it is expected to reach 2,300 per cent. Many people cannot afford basic goods such as nappies, engine oil or medicines. Even flour and milk are so expensive that they are beyond the reach of many.

Last week the daily pay of a worker on the minimum wage sank to 5,333.33 bolivars, or 3p at the popular black market exchange rate. An egg from a supermarket costs 7,333.33 bolivars.

There are three exchange rates: the official one, a middle rate that some companies are allowed