OREANDA-NEWS. February 16, 2015. Venezuela's economy should grow in 2015 after entering recession last year, central bank president Nelson Merentes said in a television interview broadcast on Sunday.

"Yes, there should be growth (in 2015)," Merentes said, adding, "I'm not optimistic about growing five percent or anything like that."

The central bank's most recent statistics show that the OPEC nation's economy began shrinking in the first quarter of 2014.

Venezuela's GDP shrank 4.8 percent in the first quarter, 4.9 percent from May to June, and 2.3 percent in the third quarter. Merentes did not offer details on gross domestic product results for the full year of 2014.

He added that the government will likely boost prices of the country's heavily subsidized fuel, as suggested by Finance Minister Rodolfo Marco in an interview on Friday.

"It's coming," he said when asked about a possible fuel hike.

Government finances have been stretched thin by a sharp decline in the price of oil, which provides more than 95 percent of Venezuela's hard currency.

Its bonds are trading at distressed levels on concern over a possible default.

President Nicolas Maduro says the country will meet all of its commitments and calls debt rumors a right-wing smear campaign meant to weaken his government.