President Donald Trump is imposing a 25% 'Secondary' tariff on Venezuela, and a 25% tariff on "any Country that purchases Oil and/or Gas from Venezuela," payable to the United States "on any Trade they do with our Country."

The tariffs, which would go into affect April 2 should Trump implement them, would cut a major source of revenue for the Maduro government - while ratcheting up pressure on China, a major purchaser of Venezuelan crude that's already looking at 20% tariffs under Trump.

Trump cited "the fact that Venezuela has purposefully and deceitfully sent to the United States, undercover, tens of thousands of high level, and other, criminals, many of whom are murderers and people of a very violent nature," in his 25% tariff on Venezuela, and says the additional 25% tariff punishing anyone buying oil or gas will begin on April 2nd.

Needless to say, the news sent oil immediately higher in Monday trade.

The move would particularly affect China, which has been a major purchaser of Venezuelan crude - and it's unclear i) if China will agree to be impacted by unilateral tariffs and ii) how the US would enforce them against China.

Venezuelan crude exports had risen to a five-year high in February before the Trump administration said it was forcing Chevron to wind down its operations by April 3. Chevron had sought more time to conclude operations with Venezuela's state-owned Petroleos de Venezuela. In canceling the deal, Trump  announced in a post on Truth Social that he was "reversing the concessions" of the "oil transaction agreement, dated November 26, 2022."

These were concessions enacted by his Democratic predecessor Joe Biden, which had allowed Chevron Corp - active in the Latin American country for a century - to produce and sell oil in Venezuela despite sanctions.

The news comes one day after Venezuela agreed to resume accepting US deportations of illegal immigrants, and is sure to escalate tensions with the Maduro government as Trump seeks to crack down on the Venezuelan gang, Tren de Aragua.

The largest buyers of Venezuelan oil include US refiners, which rely on the Latin American nation's heavy grade of crude. Said US refiners include Valero Energy Corp, Phillips 66, PBF Energy and Chevron’s Pascagoula facility in Mississippi.

Venezuela had the world’s largest proven crude oil reserves in 2023 with approximately 303 billion barrels, accounting for approximately 17% of global reserves, according to US government data. Despite the sizable reserves, Venezuela produced about 875,000 barrels a day in 2024, according to OPEC data, or about 0.9% of total global oil production in 2024. -Bloomberg

That said, Trump didn't detail any plans to slap tariffs on sales to the US, which means crude imports from the country could continue as-is.

What's going on here?

Trump cracking down on Venezuela and Iran oil production (~5MM bpd) while backchanneling with Saudis/UAE to allow OPEC+ to boost overall output in April, and leaving some space for US producers. https://t.co/flVwSmEUKr

— zerohedge (@zerohedge) March 24, 2025

*  *  *

Anza Knives are back In Stock! We just got a huge delivery.

Satisfaction guaranteed or your money back, lifetime guarantee. And if you're looking for a great daily carry, check this one out.