Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez yesterday renewed a threat to halt oil supplies to the US if Washington "hurts" the Latin American country.
Relations between Venezuela, which exports the bulk of its oil to the US, and Washington have been badly strained since Chavez last month accused Washington of plotting to have him assassinated.
"If there is any aggression, there will be no oil," Chavez, who arrived in New Delhi on a four-day visit to India, told journalists, the Press Trust of India reported.
"We want to supply oil to the US. We're not going to avoid this supply of oil unless the US government gets a little bit crazy and tries to hurt us," he said after a ceremonial welcome at the Indian president's palace.
The US State Department has dismissed Chavez's accusations that Washington is seeking to have him killed as "ridiculous and untrue."
Venezuela is the world's fifth-biggest oil exporter and is among the largest providers to the US.
Asked whether the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), of which Venezuela is a member, will increase output to cool current near-record prices, Chavez said yesterday the cartel was "producing enough."
"[The] increasing price of oil has nothing to do with OPEC. It is the structure of the market," he said, adding OPEC was evaluating factors at work.
Crude futures rose slightly yesterday following Thursday's record surge of US$1.50, as active fund buying and supply fears continued to drive the market.
On the New York Mercantile Exchange, light, sweet crude for April delivery rose US$0.05 to US$53.62 a barrel.
Victor Shum, oil analyst in Singapore for Texas-based Purvin & Gertz, an energy consulting firm, said the surge in prices was "not consistent with supply and demand fundamentals."
"Although demand is strong, I don't think demand will exceed supply," he said.
The price surge was also supported by comments from OPEC official Adnan Shihab-Eldin of Kuwait, who said on Thursday that a major supply disruption could send crude prices to US$80 per barrel.
Oil prices are also up sharply in recent weeks due to fears that OPEC could rein in production at its upcoming meeting in Isfahan, Iran, on March 16.
However, recent signals from OPEC officials that the cartel is unlikely to cut production have failed to calm the market.
"It may take the OPEC meeting to break this surge in prices," Shum said.
Jitters about the OPEC meeting, cold weather and the weak dollar have contributed to the recent rise in oil prices, which are now 52 percent above year-ago levels.
FREEDOM OF NAVIGATION: The UK would continue to reinforce ties with Taiwan ‘in a wide range of areas’ as a part of a ‘strong unofficial relationship,’ a paper said The UK plans to conduct more freedom of navigation operations in the Taiwan Strait and the South China Sea, British Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs David Lammy told the British House of Commons on Tuesday. British Member of Parliament Desmond Swayne said that the Royal Navy’s HMS Spey had passed through the Taiwan Strait “in pursuit of vital international freedom of navigation in the South China Sea.” Swayne asked Lammy whether he agreed that it was “proper and lawful” to do so, and if the UK would continue to carry out similar operations. Lammy replied “yes” to both questions. The
‘OF COURSE A COUNTRY’: The president outlined that Taiwan has all the necessary features of a nation, including citizens, land, government and sovereignty President William Lai (賴清德) discussed the meaning of “nation” during a speech in New Taipei City last night, emphasizing that Taiwan is a country as he condemned China’s misinterpretation of UN Resolution 2758. The speech was the first in a series of 10 that Lai is scheduled to give across Taiwan. It is the responsibility of Taiwanese citizens to stand united to defend their national sovereignty, democracy, liberty, way of life and the future of the next generation, Lai said. This is the most important legacy the people of this era could pass on to future generations, he said. Lai went on to discuss
AMENDMENT: Climate change is expected to increase the frequency of high-temperature days, affecting economic productivity and public health, experts said The Central Weather Administration (CWA) is considering amending the Meteorological Act (氣象法) to classify “high temperatures” as “hazardous weather,” providing a legal basis for work or school closures due to extreme heat. CWA Administrator Lu Kuo-chen (呂國臣) yesterday said the agency plans to submit the proposed amendments to the Executive Yuan for review in the fourth quarter this year. The CWA has been monitoring high-temperature trends for an extended period, and the agency contributes scientific data to the recently established High Temperature Response Alliance led by the Ministry of Environment, Lu said. The data include temperature, humidity, radiation intensity and ambient wind,
SECOND SPEECH: All political parties should work together to defend democracy, protect Taiwan and resist the CCP, despite their differences, the president said President William Lai (賴清德) yesterday discussed how pro-Taiwan and pro-Republic of China (ROC) groups can agree to maintain solidarity on the issue of protecting Taiwan and resisting the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). The talk, delivered last night at Taoyuan’s Hakka Youth Association, was the second in a series of 10 that Lai is scheduled to give across Taiwan. Citing Taiwanese democracy pioneer Chiang Wei-shui’s (蔣渭水) slogan that solidarity brings strength, Lai said it was a call for political parties to find consensus amid disagreements on behalf of bettering the nation. All political parties should work together to defend democracy, protect Taiwan and resist
RSS