Oil extends losses as Trump announces Venezuela oil shipments, stocks wobble

Oil prices extended their decline on Wednesday after US President Donald Trump said Venezuela would transfer millions of barrels of oil to the United States, while global stock markets showed mixed movements following a strong start to the year.

Crude futures fell as much as 2 percent on Tuesday and around 1 percent on Wednesday after Trump posted on Truth Social that “the Interim Authorities in Venezuela will be turning over between 30 and 50 million barrels of high quality, sanctioned oil” to the United States. He added that the oil would be sold at market price and the revenue would be used to benefit both Venezuelans and Americans.

Analysts said the planned shipments reduced the risk that Venezuela would need to cut output due to limited storage capacity, easing supply concerns and contributing to lower oil price expectations. The market remains well supplied after OPEC+ agreed to increase production.

Venezuela holds about a fifth of the world’s oil reserves, but experts noted that quickly boosting output would be challenged by aging infrastructure, low prices and ongoing political uncertainty.

Equity markets showed mixed performance after hitting record highs earlier in the year, boosted by strong demand for artificial intelligence-related stocks. South Korea’s Kospi continued its gains on Wednesday, while Sydney, Singapore, Shanghai, Wellington and Jakarta also rose. However, Hong Kong, Taipei and Manila declined, and Tokyo slipped after China imposed tougher export controls on products shipped to Japan with potential military uses.

Despite rising geopolitical tensions, analysts remained optimistic about equities this year. Michael Brown at Pepperstone said investors are focused on resilient economic growth and strong earnings, along with expectations of looser monetary and fiscal policies over the next 12 months. He added that any market dips could present buying opportunities.

Key figures at around 0230 GMT showed West Texas Intermediate down 1.2 percent at $56.47 per barrel and Brent down 1.0 percent at $60.10. In stock markets, the Nikkei 225 was down 0.5 percent at 52,257.11, the Hang Seng Index fell 1.0 percent at 26,431.70, and the Shanghai Composite edged up 0.1 percent at 4,088.40. The Dow rose 1.0 percent to 49,462.08 and the FTSE 100 gained 1.2 percent to 10,122.73 at their most recent closes.