Oil

The first trading day in February was positive for the blue-chip Dow Jones Industrial Average but negative for the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite.

Control of the country’s energy funds are at the center of the ongoing fight for political leadership.

U.S. sanctions imposed on state oil firm Petroleos de Venezuela SA (PDVSA) this week are also causing some supply disruptions.

A strong performance in the fourth quarter was driven by higher oil and gas prices, year-on-year.

Trump advisers cautioned financiers against dealing in Venezuelan commodities.

The sanctions aim to freeze sale proceeds from PDVSA's exports of roughly 500,000 barrels per day of crude to the United States.

Venezuela's exports have already fallen to little more than 1 million barrels per day in 2018.

“There’s no question that what we’re trying to do is cut off the money to the regime that should not be in power," he said.

U.S. energy firms last week increased the number of rigs looking for new oil for the first time since late December.

Global oil markets are still well supplied, however, thanks in part to a spike in U.S. output.

Many U.S. refiners rely on the type of oil that Venezuela produces.

Investors perceive oil supply to be fairly tightly balanced against demand.