Trump plans to use Venezuela's huge crude reserves 'to cut US oil price to $50 a barrel' [View all]
Source: The Guardian
Thu 8 Jan 2026 07.00 EST
First published on Thu 8 Jan 2026 06.07 EST
Donald Trump plans to use Venezuela’s vast crude reserves to establish control of most of the western hemisphere’s oil in an attempt to drive the market price down to about $50 (£37) a barrel, according to reports.
The US president has repeatedly raised the prospect of producing enough crude from Venezuela’s oilfields to drive down the US oil price from more than $56 a barrel today to about $50 in an effort to cut energy costs for consumers, according to the Wall Street Journal, which cited senior Trump administration officials.
Global oil markets have already recorded significant losses in recent years due to an oversupply of crude. Prices slumped by almost 20% in 2025, marking the biggest annual loss since the Covid-19 pandemic and the first time the oil market has recorded three consecutive years of annual losses.
As well as driving market prices lower, officials reportedly claimed Trump’s plans to control Venezuela’s oil reserves, which are the largest in the world, include cutting Russia and China’s access to the South American country in order to establish a western hemisphere oil production stronghold.
Read more: https://www.theguardian.com/business/2026/jan/08/trump-plans-use-venezuela-huge-oil-reserves-to-cut-us-consumer-price-to-50-a-barrel
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