Oil prices plummet as Donald Trump says Venzuela is 'turning over' millions of barrels
Predictions that the actions of the United States in Venezuela would cause the price of oil to drop have came true, as President Donald Trump has claimed that Venezuela is 'turning over' millions of barrels.
The capture of Venzuelan president Nicolás Maduro late last week by the United States government and subsequent occupation of the South American nation not only raised concerns over alleged breaches of international law, but also prompted plenty to speculate about the impact this action would have on the global oil economy.
Venezuela currently holds around a fifth of the world's total oil reserves – the largest of any nation – and in detaining Maduro the United States has now taken control of this, subsequently wielding significant power.
This remains incredibly significant on a geopolitical scale as Venezuela supplied oil to China, a significant rival of the United States, with around 68 percent of exports going to powerful Asian nation.
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President Donald Trump has now revealed plans to control Venezuela's oil sales 'indefinitely' after seizing over 50 million barrels, which could work out to a total of $3 billion into an already oversupplied global market.
This has caused the oil price to drop to just over $60 per barrel on Wednesday, as per the Guardian, with drops to as low as $56 earlier in the week.
Falling in line with investor expectations, this could also spell good news for cryptocurrency investors as it would likely prompt inflation – something that experts believe will be incredibly beneficial to the price of something like Bitcoin.
Taking to Truth Social, Trump outlined in reference to the income generated by Venezuelan oil sales: "That money will be controlled by me, as President [...] It will be taken by storage ships and brought directly to unloading docks in the United States."
US Energy Secretary Chris Wright has also claimed that the proceeds of the oil would be used "to benefit the Venezuelan people," but Vice President JD Vance has added:
"We control the energy resources, and we tell the regime you're allowed to sell the oil so long as you serve America's national interest, you're not allowed to sell it if you can't serve America's national interest."
China's foreign ministry has spoken out against allegedly hostile tactics used by the US government to seize control of Venezuela's oil, asserting that the nation "enjoys full and permanent sovereignty over its natural resources and economic activities," and that any efforts to disrupt that from the US would "violate international law, infringe upon Venezuela's sovereignty, and harm the rights of the Venezuelan people."