Oil falls as US boosts Venezuela oil involvement
Oil prices declined amid expectations that Venezuelan crude will continue to flow, especially to the U.S., while U.S. forces seized two more sanctioned oil tankers as part of their ongoing energy quarantine of the country.
West Texas Intermediate fell 2% to near $56 on Wednesday, as traders viewed the potential arrival of excess barrels from Venezuela as a further bearish signal in an already oversupplied market, News.Az reports, citing foreign media.
Late on Tuesday, President Donald Trump said Venezuela’s interim authorities agreed to give up as many as 50 million barrels of “high quality, sanctioned oil” to the US.
The US has begun marketing Venezuelan crude in the global market and working with banks and commodity marketers to execute trades, according to a fact sheet released by the Department of Energy. It’s also sending US light crude oil as a diluent to “mix, upgrade and optimize” Venezuela’s sludgy crude, the agency said.
And the Trump administration is selectively rolling back sanctions on Venezuela, according to the agency, though it did not say which specific sanctions would be removed.
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