Crude oil futures traded lower on Tuesday morning after reports said the US administration plans to meet the oil companies later this week to discuss boosting oil production in Venezuela.
At 9.59 am on Tuesday, March Brent oil futures were at $61.57, down by 0.31 per cent, and February crude oil futures on WTI (West Texas Intermediate) were at $58.09, down by 0.39 per cent. January crude oil futures were trading at ₹5,245 on Multi Commodity Exchange (MCX) during the initial hour of trading on Tuesday against the previous close of ₹5,270, down by 0.47 per cent, and February futures were trading at ₹5,255 against the previous close of ₹5,277, down by 0.42 per cent.
A Reuters report said that the US administration is planning to meet with executives from US oil companies later this week to discuss boosting Venezuelan oil production after US forces ousted its leader, Nicolas Maduro.
Quoting White House spokesperson Taylor Rogers, the report said: “All of our oil companies are ready and willing to make big investments in Venezuela that will rebuild their oil infrastructure, which was destroyed by the illegitimate Maduro regime.”
Citing four oil industry executives familiar with the matter, the report said the biggest US oil companies such as Exxon Mobil, ConocoPhillips, and Chevron have not yet had any conversations with the administration about Maduro’s ouster, contradicting Trump’s statements over the weekend that he had already held meetings with all the US oil companies, both before and since Maduro was seized.
Quoting one of the sources, the report said: “Nobody in those three companies has had conversations with the White House about operating in Venezuela, pre-removal or post-removal to this point.”
In their Commodities Feed for Tuesday, Warren Patterson, Head of Commodities Strategy of ING Think, and Ewa Manthey, Commodities Strategist, said oil prices had a choppy session on Monday with the market trying to digest the impact of the arrest of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro by the US. ICE Brent fell below $60 a barrel at one point during the trading session but settled 1.66 per cent higher on the day at $61.76 a barrel.
“Developments over the weekend pose further downside risk to Venezuelan oil supply in the short term, and leave the potential for upside in the longer term. This would require significant investment in the domestic energy sector, which foreign companies may be reluctant to undertake unless there is a more attractive investment environment or some form of guarantee for investors,” they said.
January aluminium futures were trading at ₹311.10 on MCX during the initial hour of trading on Tuesday against the previous close of ₹306.40, up by 1.53 per cent.
On the National Commodities and Derivatives Exchange (NCDEX), Janaury guargum contracts were trading at ₹11553 in the initial hour of trading on Tuesday against the previous close of ₹11487, up by 0.57 per cent.
Janaury dhaniya futures were trading at ₹9,652 on NCDEX in the initial hour of trading on Tuesday against the previous close of ₹9,786, down by 1.37 per cent.
Published on January 6, 2026
