Biden’s softer stance on international sanctions unlikely to trigger big waves in oil markets
President-elect Joe Biden could take a more lenient approach to heavily sanctioned nations such as Iran and Venezuela, but the timing and impacted volumes of crude are unlikely to have big impacts on the oil markets that will remain dominated by the ongoing coronavirus pandemic.
Outgoing President Donald Trump took a hard-line stance on sanctions, undoing the US-Iran nuclear accord and adding new sanctions to the already economically unraveling Venezuela, while recognizing an opposition administration against President Nicolás Maduro. However, Maduro is consolidating more power heading into 2021, including through boycotted elections on Dec. 6, while Biden could reinstate a similar Iran deal negotiated under former President Barack Obama.