Gasoline futures for delivery in the New York Harbor rose toward $1.8 per gallon from the near five-year low of $1.7 touched on January 6th as markets reconsidered the impact that higher exports of Venezuelan crude oil may have on US refinery capacity. A wave of energy executives expressed their hesitance over bidding for contracts of Venezuelan oil, citing skepticism over the sustainability and political uncertainty of operations in Venezuela under the current regime in a time where fuel prices already hover at recent lows. This was after US President Trump signaled that authorities had already secured future shipments of Venezuelan crude oil. The event supported the outlook for major refiners that operate infrastructure apt for the heavy sour crude oil extracted from the Caribbean, adding to the supply of fuel into the US. Additionally, Chevron, the only US company with licenses to operate in Venezuela, signaled it hired 11 tankers to increase capacity of fuel exports to the US.
