Oil prices climb amid U.S.-Venezuela tensions

December 15, 2025 (MLN): Oil prices rebounded on Monday, recovering a portion of last week’s 4% decline, as geopolitical concerns over U.S.-Venezuela tensions overshadowed lingering oversupply fears and potential impacts from a Russia-Ukraine peace deal.

Brent crude futures increased by $0.28, or 0.46%, to $61.40 per barrel.

West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures went up by $0.28, or 0.49%, to $57.72 per barrel by [12:40 pm] PST.

Tsuyoshi Ueno, senior economist, said that Russia-Ukraine peace talks fluctuate between cautious optimism and setbacks. He added that rising tensions between Venezuela and the U.S. are raising worries about possible supply disruptions.

Despite the gains, oversupply concerns persist. Ueno said that unless geopolitical risks escalate sharply, WTI crude could dip below $55 per barrel in the early months of next year, according to CNBC.

In Berlin on Sunday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy reportedly offered to abandon his country’s NATO membership ambitions during five hours of discussions with U.S. envoys.

Talks are scheduled to continue on Monday. U.S. envoy Steve Witkoff noted that “significant progress” was made, though specific details were not disclosed.

Meanwhile, Ukraine’s military claimed on Friday that it had struck a major Russian oil refinery in Yaroslavl, northeast of Moscow. Industry sources reported that the facility temporarily halted operations.

In Venezuela, opposition leader Maria Corina Machado made headlines after secretly leaving the country to accept the Nobel Peace Prize.

Her actions follow heightened tensions after the U.S. seized a Venezuelan oil tanker last week, compounded by new sanctions on shipping firms trading with the Latin American nation.

These developments have contributed to a sharp drop in Venezuela’s oil exports.

On the supply front, U.S. energy companies reduced the number of oil and natural gas rigs for the second time in three weeks, according to Baker Hughes, reflecting ongoing caution in domestic production.

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