Oil prices drop as Trump vows to seize up to 50m barrels of Venezuelan crude
Why oil prices have plummeted after Trump’s latest Venezuela announcement
- Oil prices, including Brent crude, experienced a sharp decline, falling below 60 US dollars a barrel following an announcement by Donald Trump.
- Mr Trump stated that "interim authorities" in Venezuela would supply 30 million to 50 million barrels of "high quality" crude oil to the US at market price.
- The oil, estimated to be worth close to two billion US dollars, would be transported via storage ships, with the proceeds managed by Mr Trump for the benefit of both Venezuelan and US citizens.
- This development follows a US military operation to capture Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro and is set against a backdrop of market fears regarding a global oil supply glut anticipated by 2026.
- The fall in crude prices negatively impacted London-listed energy companies BP and Shell, which saw early session declines, contributing to a dip in the wider FTSE 100 index.