Mr. Trump wants OPEC to lower oil prices to end the war in Ukraine

On January 23, US President Donald Trump gave a speech at the World Economic Forum (WEF) taking place in Davos (Switzerland). In particular, the US President affirmed that Saudi Arabia and the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) were responsible for the war in Ukraine, because they allowed oil prices to increase.

“I will ask Saudi Arabia and OPEC to lower oil prices. If prices decrease, the war between Russia and Ukraine will end immediately,” the US President announced. Over the past few years, the West has been trying to squeeze Russia’s oil revenue, believing it is a financial source for the war in Ukraine.

Mr. Trump also added that when oil prices fall, he will demand “immediate interest rate lowering.” Even the US President said interest rates could cool down around the world.

After his statement, world crude oil prices turned down. US crude oil WTI decreased 1.13% to 74.5 USD per barrel. Brent oil lost 0.92% to 78.2 USD. Before Mr. Trump’s speech, the market was going up.

Saudi Arabia, Russia and 6 other members of OPEC+ are reducing production by 2.2 million barrels of oil a day to prevent prices from falling deeply. Last month, this group continued to extend the output tightening policy until the end of March 2025.

This is the US President’s first speech to global businessmen and politicians, after taking office on January 20. Mr. Trump’s appearance this year attracted a lot of attention. The world is closely following his statements to find more information about the policy of imposing import taxes on all goods entering the US, and his stance on major economic and geopolitical issues such as the war between Russia and America. Ukraine, the future of Israel-Palestine relations as well as economic competition between the US and China.

This is not the first time President Trump has given a speech at Davos. In 2018, he was the first US President to attend the World Economic Forum (WEF) in 18 years. At this event, he affirmed that “America first does not mean alone” and that the country’s growth thanks to his policies will benefit the world.

At Davos in 2020, he declared that the “America first” policy was working. At that time, US GDP growth was better than forecast, the unemployment rate remained below 4% and the stock market continuously set records.