Overview
- Brent rose to about $62 and WTI to $58 as traders pointed to President Trump's pledge to control Venezuelan oil sales and unrest affecting Iran's production outlook.
- U.S. Energy Secretary Chris Wright said Washington intends to maintain significant, potentially indefinite oversight of Venezuela's oil sales.
- Satellite analysis reported by Bloomberg shows extensive methane leaking, venting and flaring from Venezuelan infrastructure, including roughly 13 billion cubic meters of gas worth about $1.4 billion each year.
- Experts from RMI and Rice University's Baker Institute estimate that returning output toward 4 million barrels a day would require about $100 billion over the next decade and sustained operational management.
- Control of Venezuela's export flows remains unsettled after Delsi Rodríguez took an oath as interim leader on Jan. 5, a shift that could reorder trade ties involving Russia, Iran, China and Cuba.