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Trump dropped another bomb on Monday. He said countries that keep buying oil or gas from Venezuela will face a 25% tariff on everything they trade with the U.S. The so-called leader of the free world made that clear in a Truth Social post, where he also reiterated that the tariffs will kick in on April 2. And yes, it’s aimed right at Maduro and China. The numbers aren’t small. Venezuela pumped out around 660,000 barrels per day in 2024, according to Kpler. About 270,000 bpd of that went to China, making it Venezuela’s biggest oil customer. The U.S. came in second, importing 233,000 bpd. India got 61,000 bpd, and Spain pulled in about 60,000 bpd. Trump targets China and Venezuela with tariffs “This announcement by the Trump administration appears to be one more action targeting China,” said Matt Smith, oil analyst at Kpler, to CNBC. That’s not guesswork. That’s exactly how Trump wants it. He’s trying to choke off China’s grip on Venezuelan oil while handing U.S. producers an edge. That’s what people told The Wall Street Journal, after a closed-door White House meeting between Trump, Chevron CEO Mike Wirth, and other oil execs. During that meeting, Trump said he’s open to extending Chevron’s license to drill in Venezuela—despite saying earlier in February that he’d reverse Biden’s decision that allowed them back in. The Treasury gave Chevron until April 3 to pack it up. Now? Maybe not. Meanwhile, oil prices started to react. Brent crude jumped 61 cents to $72.77 per barrel. U.S. West Texas Intermediate rose 59 cents to $68.87. “We expect oil prices to go higher in light of this news and may rise further if Trump follows through with this proclamation,” said Leo Mariani, an analyst at Roth, in a note to clients. But this isn’t…

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Filed under: News - @ March 24, 2025 7:27 pm