The Binational Business Meeting Vision Border 2025 was held in the city of Cúcuta, on the border with Venezuela, to mark the third anniversary of the reopening of the border and the restoration of diplomatic relations. Photo: social media of the Colombo-Venezuelan Chamber of Commerce (CCV).
Guacamaya, September 5, 2025. Trade between Colombia and Venezuela reached US$560.7 million in the first half of 2025, representing a 14.1% growth compared to the same period the previous year, according to figures from DANE and the Colombo-Venezuelan Chamber of Commerce (CCV). The report was presented during the Binational Business Meeting “Vision Frontera 2025,” held in Cúcuta to mark the third anniversary of the border reopening and the reestablishment of diplomatic relations.
The report indicates that Colombian exports to Venezuela reached US$508.5 million FOB, an increase of 18.9% compared to 2024. The main categories of goods sent were food, beverages, and tobacco (27%), chemical products (24%), plastic materials (11%), animals and animal products (7%), and metals and their manufactures (5%).
Conversely, imports from Venezuela fell by 21.3%, dropping from US$70.3 million in 2024 to US$55.3 million CIF in 2025. The decline was due to reduced purchases of salt, sulfur, gypsum, lime, cement, fuels, and mineral oils. Nevertheless, the main goods acquired were casting materials, iron, and steel (25%), electrical equipment and materials (20%), and fertilizers (15%).
The study also highlights that Cúcuta accounts for 51% of bilateral trade, followed by Maicao (23%) and Barranquilla (20%). According to the Governor of Norte de Santander, William Villamizar, between 30,000 and 40,000 Venezuelans cross the international bridges daily to purchase goods, receive medical attention, or buy essential products, which boosts the local economy.
The President of the CCV, Germán Umaña, emphasized that the growth was driven by the food and beverage, chemical products, and plastic materials sectors, and celebrated the progress made since the border reopening in 2022: “We went from nearly zero figures during the border closure to an exchange that exceeds US$560.7 million this semester.”
For her part, Venezuela’s Minister of Foreign Trade, Coromoto Godoy, reaffirmed the government’s commitment to working alongside Colombia to make the Binational Zone of Peace a “model for the region and the world.”
The Binational Business Meeting concluded with the signing of a joint roadmap to overcome obstacles, promote investment, and stimulate production in both countries. This plan is part of the broader effort to establish the Binational Zone of Peace and Economic and Social Development, a project supported by public and private sectors aimed at deepening Colombian-Venezuelan integration.
