Venezuela's Maduro travels to China in search of fresh funds

[To-Whose-Benefit?]

China's going to Buy Venezuela. This won't end well.

Reuters
Corina Pons  September 12, 2018 / 2:28 PM / Updated 31 minutes ago

[excerpt]

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-venezuela-china/venezuelas-maduro-travels-to-china-in-search-of-fresh-funds-idUSKCN1LS2UL

CARACAS (Reuters) - Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro is traveling to China to discuss economic agreements, as the crisis-struck OPEC nation seeks to convince its key Asian financier to disburse fresh loans.

“I am going with great expectations and we will see each other again in a few days with big achievements,” the leftist leader said on Wednesday in a state broadcast from the airport, without providing details.

Venezuela’s Information Ministry did not respond to a request for comment.

[Cyber Liberty]

This would complicate trade talks with the US.  On the upside, China would end up with a weaker bargaining position after taking on this Communist basket case.

[To-Whose-Benefit?]

This would complicate trade talks with the US.  On the upside, China would end up with a weaker bargaining position after taking on this Communist basket case.

Perhaps, BUT, China needs crude oil. Venzuela's got it.

[thackney]

Perhaps, BUT, China needs crude oil. Venzuela's got it.

But they need a lot of help getting it out of the ground and loaded on ships.


Venezuela's Oil Exports Are Headed Toward Zero
https://www.forbes.com/sites/rrapier/2018/06/08/venezuelas-oil-exports-are-headed-toward-zero/#64e2e79a6876

...“Crude oil production in Venezuela is practically falling at an average of 10% every quarter and has been since mid-2017. A scenario with oil production in the country losing at least another 500,000 barrels per day by the end of the year is not unrealistic. Having full additional sanctions imposed would certainly send a strong geopolitical message from the U.S. at the risk of generating more instability in the world supply markets."

GlobalData also forecast that Venezuelan crude oil production would fall to around one million barrels per day by the end of 2018. This is a steep decline from the three million barrels per day that Venezuela produced in 2011.

Platts reported this week that Venezuela has already warned eight international customers that it wouldn't be able to meet its crude oil commitments to them in June. Venezuela's state oil company PDVSA is contractually obligated to supply 1.495 million barrels per day to those customers in June, but only has 694,000 barrels per day available for export.....