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CARACAS, Venezuela — While U.S. President Donald Trump’s threats of military intervention against alleged drug trafficking targets in Venezuela dominated international headlines, the palpable reality on the streets of Caracas told a different story. At a popular shopping mall, unprecedented Black Friday discounts failed to attract crowds, revealing a nation gripped by economic catastrophe rather than geopolitical fears.

Window displays promoting 30% discounts and shoes priced at $20 stood largely ignored. Even the newly opened H&M store remained virtually empty throughout the morning. Venezuelans interviewed consistently pointed to the country’s suffocating economic collapse as the primary reason for the subdued shopping activity, contrasting sharply with post-pandemic years when enthusiastic shoppers formed lines outside stores.

Physician Luisa Torrealba articulated the national sentiment outside an appliance store: “The country’s economy is based on day-to-day survival. What do I do to survive today and live tomorrow? We don’t have the luxury of stopping because there’s going to be a war, because there’s a psychological war going on.”

The economic numbers paint a devastating picture. The International Monetary Fund reported Venezuela’s annual inflation rate reached 270% last month. Families require more than $500 monthly for basic necessities, while the minimum wage remains frozen at 130 bolivars ($0.52) since 2022—well below the UN’s extreme poverty threshold of $2.15 per day. Most public sector workers survive on approximately $160 monthly, with private sector employees averaging $237 according to the independent Venezuelan Observatory of Finances.

This economic reality has reshaped consumer behavior. Marian García, 26, arrived expecting crowds at a shoe store offering $20 boots normally priced at $60-80. Instead, she found herself first in line. “It’s difficult to indulge in luxuries,” she noted. “Due to the current economic situation, people are cutting back and only spending on essentials.”

Yarbelis Revilla, working three jobs and self-identifying as a master bargain hunter, surveyed multiple stores but found few truly compelling deals. She explained that shoe shopping might seem like “vanity” amid crisis, but emphasized her focus on present needs rather than an uncertain future, referencing biblical teachings against worrying about tomorrow.

Meanwhile, the U.S. has intensified pressure on President Nicolás Maduro’s government, doubling rewards for information leading to his arrest on narcoterrorism charges to $50 million. The ongoing U.S. military operation has already resulted in 80 fatalities from strikes against vessels in international waters, some allegedly departing from Venezuelan territory.

Maduro and his allies maintain that the military operation aims to force regime change, but for most Venezuelans, immediate economic survival takes precedence over geopolitical tensions that have become background noise to daily struggles.

SANTIAGO, Chile (AP) — Peruvian President José Jarí announced Friday that his government will implement a state of emergency along the nation’s southern border and deploy additional armed forces to the region. This decisive action comes in response to a significant reversal in migration patterns, with substantial numbers of Venezuelan migrants now moving north from Chile back toward Peru.

The development occurs against the backdrop of Chile’s intensely polarized presidential campaign, where anti-immigrant sentiment has become a central political issue. For years, Chile has represented a beacon of stability and prosperity in Latin America, attracting hundreds of thousands of migrants escaping economic collapse and authoritarian regimes, particularly from Venezuela. These migrants traditionally traversed the continent seeking better opportunities in Chilean society.

However, this established migration pattern has undergone a dramatic reversal as Chile prepares for its December 14 presidential runoff. Ultraconservative lawyer José Antonio Kast, the current frontrunner, has built his campaign platform around stringent immigration controls and warnings against unauthorized migration. Kast recently filmed a campaign video at Chile’s desert border with Peru, delivering an ultimatum to immigrants without formal status: “You have 111 days to leave Chile voluntarily. If not, we will stop you, we will detain you, we will expel you. You will leave with only the clothes on your back.”

Peruvian media has subsequently been flooded with images of migrant families hastily moving north from Chile into Peru, carrying their possessions in backpacks and garbage bags. The situation created immediate border challenges, prompting President Jarí to personally inspect border controls and deploy security reinforcements to the area.

Residents in northern Chilean border towns reported growing chaos as crowds of people who departed Chile but lacked permission to enter Peru found themselves stranded in legal limbo. The exact number of migrants reversing course remains unclear, though the movement appears directly linked to Kast’s threats of mass deportations and what immigration attorneys describe as rising xenophobia in the country of 18.5 million people.

Chilean Security Minister Luis Cordero addressed the situation cautiously, noting that “rhetoric sometimes has consequences” when asked about the impact of Kast’s statements on migrant outflows. Cordero emphasized that “people cannot be used as a means to create controversy for the elections” and stated that “our main purpose is to prevent a humanitarian crisis.”