Chaos continues in Venezuela where, last week, U.S.-backed opposition leader Juan Guiadó declared himself interim president. This set up a standoff with the person who occupies the presidential palace in Caracas, Nicolás Maduro. Now, with the world’s most oil-rich country in political and economic disarray, there could be consequences for the energy market here in the U.S.
Matt Smith is director of commodity research at ClipperData, and he says both the U.S. and Venezuela have a lot to lose if the political relationship between the two countries deteriorates.
“The reality is, the U.S. is very much reliant on Venezuela’s oil, and Venezuela’s very much reliant on the U.S.,” Smith says.
The good news, he says, at least for now, is that the business relationship is still separate from the political one, “unless we see some real escalation.”
What you’ll hear in this segment:
– Why Maduro is still in control of Venezuela and its oil business
– Why the U.S. and Venezuela’s energy industries are so intertwined
– How Russia and China also play significant roles in Venezuela’s energy industry
Written by Caroline Covington.
