Venezuela’s oil exports inched up from April to hit a fresh seven-year high in May as shipments to the United States and India continued to rise.
Venezuela exported an estimated 1.25 million barrels per day (bpd) of oil in May, up by 0.7% compared to April’s 1.23 million bpd exports and a massive 61% jump compared to May 2025, according to ship-tracking and vessel-loading data reviewed by Reuters.
Venezuela has been steadily increasing its oil exports since the U.S. took control over its oil sales following the capture of Nicolas Maduro early this year.
The U.S. has eased sanctions on Venezuela’s oil industry and its state oil firm PDVSA, allowed Western firms to return to Venezuelan operations, and has encouraged American companies to sign production and export deals.
The U.S. and India have become major buyers of Venezuela’s oil after the sanctions were dropped and the top international oil traders Vitol and Trafigura were tasked to sell most of the crude to buyers.
As a result, the Venezuelan exports rose for a third consecutive month in May, with shipments to India accounting for the slight increase compared to April.
Exports in April jumped by 14% from March levels, with 66 cargoes leaving Venezuelan ports during the month, and volumes at their highest since 2019 when the first Trump Administration imposed sanctions on PDVSA and Venezuela’s oil exports.
In May, a total of 67 cargoes carrying Venezuelan crude were exported, according to the data Reuters has reviewed.
The United States remained the top buyer of Venezuela’s crude, taking in about 558,000 bpd in May, followed by India with 427,000 bpd and Europe with 169,000 bpd. Shipments to all three regions rose in May from April levels.
India’s top private refiner, Reliance Industries, has become one of the three biggest buyers of Venezuelan crude as it imported cargoes sold by Chevron, Vitol, and Trafigura, according to the data.
India is importing the highest volumes of Venezuelan crude in six years as it turns to the South American producer amid the Middle East supply crisis.
May Auto Demand "Stronger Than Expectations", Deutsche Says
In a preview of May U.S. auto sales, Deutsche Bank analyst Edison Yu and his team said industry demand appears to be holding up better than expected. They estimate the seasonally adjusted annual selling rate (SAAR) reached 15.9 million units during the month, modestly above last year's pace of roughly 15.7 million. While total vehicle sales are projected to be slightly lower than a year ago, the comparison is skewed by one fewer selling day in May 2026.
After adjusting for that calendar effect, daily sales rates improved by more than 2%, suggesting underlying consumer demand remains relatively healthy.
We expect May US light vehicle SAAR to come in at 15.9m units. This compares to ~15.7m last year. Absolute sales are expected to be up MoM at ~1.453m units (vs. April at ~1.380m), but down YoY from ~1.475m in 2025. The absolute YoY change doesn't necessarily indicate a significant downgrade in consumers health but is reflective of one less selling day in 2026 resulting in a daily sales rate that actually rose ~2.3%.
The firm's dealer and channel checks indicate that automakers largely maintained pricing discipline throughout the month. Average transaction prices continued to edge higher both sequentially and year over year, reflecting a relatively stable pricing environment. Incentive activity was mixed, however.
Ford increased promotional spending through its employee pricing program, a strategy similar to one used last year, contributing to a notable rise in incentives. Industry-wide incentive levels remained significantly above year-ago levels, driven primarily by Ford and Stellantis, although incentives declined modestly compared with April.
According to Deutsche Bank's conversations with industry participants, geopolitical developments in the Middle East have not yet had a meaningful impact on vehicle demand:
This month, thus far, is stronger than our coming in expectations. Based on our conversations, the Middle East conflict appears to have little impact yet on light vehicle sales. Powertrain mix also appears relatively unchanged despite elevated oil prices. Overall we maintain our full year at 15.9m, still somewhat more conservative than the automaker's latest forecasts.
Higher fuel prices also do not appear to be changing consumer purchasing behavior, as the mix of vehicle powertrains sold has remained largely unchanged.
Looking ahead, Yu and his team left their full-year U.S. light vehicle sales forecast unchanged at 15.9 million units. That outlook remains somewhat below the forecasts recently provided by several automakers, reflecting Deutsche Bank's more cautious stance on the industry's trajectory through the remainder of the year.
On the company level, Ford's aggressive incentive activity continues to stand out, particularly in the full-size pickup segment, where incentives on the F-150 increased materially during the month. General Motors maintained relatively stable pricing and incentive levels, while Stellantis continued to offer some of the highest incentives in the industry despite modest sequential moderation.
Overall, Deutsche Bank views the May sales environment as constructive, with demand trends remaining resilient and pricing conditions generally supportive.
Statista’s Consumer Insights survey has been tracking which issues adults in the United States consider to be the most important in the country right now, and how they have shifted over time.
The following chart, via Statista's Anna Fleck, provides just a snapshot of these, listing the eight most cited concerns out of a possible 20 options, in the most recent survey wave as well as in the survey wave at the start of the pandemic.
Where health and social security came first in the earlier iteration, likely in reference to Covid-19, it had dropped by eight percentage points by 2025/26.
In the meantime, inflation and the cost of living has risen from third position to first position (+9 p.p).
Other notable changes include a drop in the share of people citing immigration in the latest wave and an increase in the share of people picking housing (previously in rank 14 at 22 percent).
Six of the eight most recent most pressing issues are social, with the sole environmental topic of climate change having dropped off the list, coming in 14th position with 23 percent of respondents picking it, following issues such as education (rank nine), corruption (rank 10) and food and water security (rank 11).
As this chart shows, poverty is now on the minds of more U.S. adults, at least more imminently, than before.
Where it had previously tied in 9th position with education in 2019/20 with a 32 percent share of respondents picking it as one the most important issues facing the country at that time, the share had risen to 33 percent in the latest survey wave.
Trump Toughens Terms Of Iran Deal Framework, As Bessent Pinpoints Tehran's 'Big Mistake'
Summary
NYT on Sunday: President Trump has toughened the terms of a potential framework for a deal to end the war in Iran.
Washington seeks to ratchet pressure, but Tehran still not budging on issue of remaining nuclear material.
Bessent describes the "big mistake" Iran made to Fox - attacking its neighbors & losing friends; also says of the Iranians "they're going to have to start taking down the wells."
Israeli PM Netanyahu says he has "instructed the Israeli military to expand the maneuver in Lebanon" after the occupation of the strategic Beaufort Castle, which he says marks "a dramatic change" in Israel’s operations.
Fresh Sunday reporting in the NY Times says President Trump has responded to Iran's refusal to budge on giving up its nuclear material by tightening US conditions as part of a Memorandum of Understanding to get back to the peace negotiating table.
"President Donald Trump has toughened the terms of a potential framework for a deal to end the war in Iran, and has sent those proposed changes back to Iran for consideration, according to three officials," NY Times writes, but didn't disclose what the precise changes are.
The report then speculates on where these changes likely focus: "Trump has been concerned about parts of the potential deal that would include unfreezing funds for the Iranians, two officials said."
Iran's Tasnim:
If Trump proposes changes to the draft agreement, Iran will make its own revisions as well.
Nothing is finalized. Iran says it will only accept terms it agrees with and is also prepared for the possibility of no deal. pic.twitter.com/KzWnxlWG8G
Citing frustration at the slow pace of Iran's response to the proposals, it adds, "He has been harshly critical of President Barack Obama for doing the same in the more than decade-old agreement that was signed to curtail Iran’s nuclear program."
Tightening the proposals is meant to ratchet up the pressure and 'force' the Islamic Republic to respond quicker and agree to a deal. However, the Iranians have time and again rejected being 'dictated to' by Washington, as its top negotiator Ghalibaf spelled out days ago.
Meanwhile there's been a recent change in tone when talking about Iran's military, from Trump himself:
"We’ve actually left their military alone — people would be surprised to hear that."
President Trump says Iran's military hasn't been hit as aggressively because it's "somewhat moderate" compared to other elements of the regime.
This also comes after a two-hour Friday Situation Room meeting Friday wherein it became clear there was no deal yet to be finalized. According to more from the Times:
The official added that Trump’s changes — a new, tougher proposal — were potentially intended to speed up the process by putting pressure on Iran to accept the framework already sent to Iran’s supreme leader, Mojtaba Khamenei, for approval.
Reaching the supreme leader has been difficult, so any changes to the document, known as the memorandum of understanding, could mean additional delays.
But for pressure to work, there has to be signs Iranian leaders are getting nervous or desperate - and so far they've not urged Washington or Pakistani mediators for some kind of grand compromise. Instead they've repeatedly sworn that Iran's highly enriched uranium will never be transferred to the possession of the United States.
Iran’s Foreign Minister, Abbas Araghchi, says “dialogue and an exchange of messages are ongoing” with the United States amid stalled negotiations.
He told Iranian news agency IRNA that “it is not possible to judge until a clear conclusion is reached; everything that is being said now is speculation and should not be taken seriously until it is certain”.
Bessent: Iran's 'Big Mistake'
Still, US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent is busy on the Sunday news shows talking tough. He told Fox in a new interview that Iran made a "big mistake" by attacking its neighbors in the Persian Gulf, within the past week. A US base in Kuwait was also reportedly just attacked by a ballistic missile, which was reportedly intercepted - but falling debris injured five US personnel.
"We had many very good allies who maybe weren't completely transparent with us on the money — Iranian money that was in their banking systems — all of a sudden became very compliant in terms of being willing to turn over accounts or help us freeze block accounts," Bessent told Fox News.
"And then the third part was the incredible blockade. I really think it's the economic blockade of funds and the physical blockade of the ships not going in or out of the Iranian ports," he added. "Kharg Island is shut down. That's their big oil loading facilities, and that means that they're going to have to start taking down the wells," Bessent said. And yet, there's nothing officially disclosed to show this is actually happening - though the Iranians have no incentive to publicize it. But time will tell.
Bessent:
A big mistake that the Iranians made was attacking their GCC neighbors, their neighbors in the Gulf, because we had many very good allies who maybe weren't completely transparent with us on the money, Iranian money that was in their banking systems, all of a sudden… pic.twitter.com/trfonLETXI
IDF Plunges Deep into Lebanon, Captures Crusader Castle
Some Lebanon war latest, via Al Jazeera, as ceasefire unravels:
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says he has “instructed the Israeli military to expand the maneuver in Lebanon” after the occupation of the strategic Beaufort Castle, which he says marks “a dramatic change” in Israel’s operations.
The Israeli military claims to have killed 900 Hezbollah “terrorists” since the start of the “ceasefire” on April 16. It added that the army had struck dozens of Hezbollah sites since this morning.
Lebanese Prime Minister Nawaf Salam has accused Israel of pursuing a “scorched-earth policy” as Israeli forces expand their ground invasion.
Washington Nationals Director of Community Relations Sean Hudson has been caught on camera admitting that he discriminates against starting pitcher Trevor Williams because of his Catholic faith.
The Daily Caller reports that O’Keefe Media Group has released a new undercover report where Hudson admits that the team avoids featuring starting pitcher Trevor Williams on social media because of his 2023 criticism of the Dodgers’ Pride Night.
That particular event honored a drag group dressed as nuns and performing on a crucifix that Williams called a mockery of Catholicism.
BREAKING NEWS: Washington @Nationals Director of Community Relations Admits on Hidden Camera to Active Religious Discrimination Against Starting Pitcher Trevor Williams, Surveillance of Nationals Fans’ Google History, and Segregated LGBTQ+ Corporate Meetings to an O’Keefe… pic.twitter.com/AWqlq6wXV9
According to Fox News, in a 2025 interview with Bishop Robert Barron, Williams explained why he spoke out, saying, “Baseball stadiums should be a place where everyone feels welcomed, like 100%. We should all feel welcomed there. But that was clearly against one certain religion. If you don’t draw the line in the sand, who’s gonna do it?”
Hudson described Williams as “super Christian-Catholic” with religious tattoos, and confessed that even lighthearted social media posts—for example, ones asking “Is a hot dog a sandwich?”—avoid including Williams because he spoke out.
Hudson also admitted on hidden camera to digitally surveilling fans who attend Nationals Park, saying, “If you ever come to a Nats game, there is someone on our team who’s responsible for figuring out everything about you, given your purchasing habits, what teams you come to when the Nats play, like what teams you come, and assigning you into a bucket of people and then catering content to you.”
The Daily Caller reports that Hudson told the undercover reporter that if a team supporter accepts online cookies “we’re getting your, a plethora of your Google history.”
In the video, the Nationals executive also described himself as “very far-left leaning” and admitted that he has a “Join the Communist Party” poster in his kitchen.
