Oil Prices Jump After Trump Orders Blockade of Venezuelan Tankers

Equities mostly rose on Wednesday, despite U.S. jobs data doing little to increase expectations for an interest rate cut next month. Oil prices surged following President Donald Trump’s announcement of a blockade on “sanctioned” Venezuelan tankers.

Federal Reserve officials have signalled that borrowing costs are unlikely to be lowered for a fourth consecutive meeting, keeping market sentiment subdued amid concerns over tech valuations and AI spending.

Investors had awaited delayed non-farm payroll reports, which showed November’s unemployment rate rising to a four-year high of 4.6 percent, reinforcing signs of a slowing U.S. labour market. Analysts noted that a 105,000-job decline in October was influenced by the extended government shutdown, while November’s 64,000-job increase slightly exceeded expectations. Overall, the data had minimal impact on rate-cut predictions, with markets pricing in roughly a 20 percent chance of a move next month.

National Australia Bank senior economist Taylor Nugent said the higher unemployment rate highlights the Fed’s ongoing labour market concerns but is unlikely to prompt immediate easing. “It would take another significant jump in unemployment to alter expectations for a January cut,” he added.

Wall Street investors largely shrugged at the data, as concerns grow that the tech-led rally of the past two years may have overextended and that AI investments might not yield immediate returns.

Asian markets were mixed on Wednesday. Tokyo, Hong Kong, Shanghai, Seoul, Manila, Bangkok, and Jakarta posted gains, while Sydney, Singapore, Taipei, Mumbai, and Wellington fell. In Europe, London rose after data showed UK inflation slowed more than expected in November, with Paris and Frankfurt also making modest gains.

Oil prices jumped over one percent after Trump declared on Truth Social that he was “ordering a total and complete blockade of all sanctioned oil tankers going into, and out of, Venezuela.” The move escalates U.S. pressure on Caracas, following months of military buildup in the Caribbean aimed at combating drug trafficking, and is viewed as an attempt to challenge Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro. The surge partially offset Tuesday’s 2.7 percent losses after the U.S. indicated progress toward a potential end to the Ukraine war, which could ease sanctions on Russian oil and raise oversupply concerns.

In currency markets, the yen strengthened against the dollar ahead of an expected Bank of Japan interest rate hike to a 30-year high. The Indian rupee rose 1 percent following central bank intervention after hitting a record low against the dollar, improving to 89.9662 from over 91 earlier in the day.

In corporate news, Chinese chipmaker MetaX Integrated Circuits Shanghai soared more than 550 percent on its debut, raising $585.8 million in its IPO. Semiconductor firm Moore Threads also rose over 500 percent earlier in the month after its $1.1 billion IPO. In contrast, shares of Hong Kong’s largest licensed cryptocurrency exchange, HashKey, fell around two percent on their first day, raising $205 million.

Key Market Figures:

• Tokyo – Nikkei 225: +0.3% at 49,512.28
• Hong Kong – Hang Seng: +0.9% at 25,468.78
• Shanghai – Composite: +1.2% at 3,870.28
• London – FTSE 100: +0.8% at 9,759.85
• Dollar/Yen:50 (down from 154.80)
• Euro/Dollar: $1.1712 (down from $1.1747)
• Pound/Dollar: $1.3324 (down from $1.3422)
• Euro/Pound:92 pence (up from 87.52)
• WTI Crude: +1.6% at $56.13 per barrel
• Brent Crude: +1.5% at $59.81 per barrel
• New York – Dow: -0.6% at 48,114.26