Venezuelan oil's volatile year
A steep production decline from the country is already priced in, but things could get even worse
Venezuela is the single biggest geopolitical risk for oil markets in 2018. The economy continues to crumble, dragging the oil industry down with it, and a contentious election scheduled for 22 April promises to fuel more political strife in an already bitterly divided country. As the crisis has worsened, Venezuela has moved up the global agenda. The US has taken the lead, ratcheting up the pressure on Nicolás Maduro's government. Economic sanctions on Venezuela have effectively cut the country off from international capital markets, making it nearly impossible for the cash-strapped government to raise new funds. At the same time, personal sanctions on senior officials in Maduro's government

Also in this section
21 August 2025
The administration has once more reduced its short-term gas price forecasts, but the expectation remains the market will tighten over the coming year, on the back of
19 August 2025
ExxonMobil’s MOU with SOCAR, unveiled in Washington alongside the peace agreement with Armenia, highlights how the Karabakh net-zero zone is part of a wider strategic realignment
19 August 2025
OPEC and the IEA have very different views on where the oil market is headed, leaving analysts wondering which way to jump
15 August 2025
US secondary sanctions are forcing a rapid reassessment of crude buying patterns in Asia, and the implications could reshape pricing, freight and supply balances worldwide. With India holding the key to two-thirds of Russian seaborne exports, the stakes could not be higher