Donald Trump, President of the United States, announced on Monday the imposition of 25% tariffs on countries buying oil from Venezuela.
Through a post on his social media platform Truth Social, the U.S. president stated: “Venezuela has been very hostile towards the United States and the freedoms we uphold. Therefore, any country purchasing oil and/or gas from Venezuela will be forced to pay a 25% tariff to the United States on any trade conducted with our country.”
These tariffs would indirectly affect Venezuela. According to Trump, this measure responds to “the fact that Venezuela has deliberately and deceitfully sent tens of thousands of high-ranking criminals and other types to the United States, many of whom are murderers and individuals of very violent nature. Among the gangs sent to the U.S. is the Tren de Aragua, designated as a ‘Foreign Terrorist Organization.'”
The tariffs will go into effect on April 2nd.
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Countries buying Venezuelan oil
Venezuela exports oil to several countries, with Asia (excluding China) being the main destination in 2023, averaging 248,000 barrels per day, representing 45% of oil exports. China and India are also important destinations, importing 101,000 and 5,000 barrels per day respectively, according to data from the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC).
Regarding regions, OECD Americas received 142,000 barrels per day, while Latin America imported 28,000 barrels per day.
In terms of individual countries, the primary export destinations for Venezuela in 2023 were India (29.68%), the United States (21.97%), China (20.24%), Spain (4.16%), and Singapore (3.85%). It is important to note that exports to the U.S. had drastically decreased due to sanctions imposed in 2018, but Chevron was permitted to ship crude to the U.S. under a special license introduced in 2023.
