Oil Prices Edge Lower As Venezuelan Exports Resume

Oil prices traded lower on Wednesday as Venezuela began reversing oil production cuts made under a strict U.S. oil embargo.

Brent crude future fell a little over 1 percent to $64.81 a barrel after notching their biggest four-day gain since June. WTI crude futures were down 0.9 percent at $60.58.

Venezuela's state-owned oil company, PDVSA, said it is currently engaged in negotiations with the U.S. government to sell crude oil, marking a significant shift in energy ties between the two countries after years of sanctions.

The announcement followed remarks Tuesday by U.S. President Donald Trump that his administration is working closely with Caracas and that large volumes of Venezuelan oil are already entering the United States as part of the engagement.

"We are bringing Venezuela back, and we are going to be great for Venezuela, great for our country. We're taking in millions and millions of barrels of oil, and now they are coming in initially on a daily basis, 50 million, and values of over $5 billion. We will get oil prices down even further," he said.

Traders were also reacting to industry data showing an increase in U.S. crude inventories for the week ending January 9.

U.S. crude oil inventories increased by 5.3 million barrels for the week, while gasoline inventories increased by 8.2 million barrels and distillates by 4.3 million barrels, according to the American Petroleum Institute.

Official data from the U.S. Energy Information Administration is expected later in the day.

Meanwhile, Trump ramped up rhetoric on Iran, threatening the country with military intervention, and asking Iranians to continue their nationwide protests, take over institutions and record the names of "killers and abusers".