Big Oil Set For $100B Windfall? Trump Admits Tipping Them Off 'Before And After' Maduro Extraction In Venezuela

• The U.S. conducted a military operation in Venezuela in the early hours of Saturday and arrested the country’s President Nicolas Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores.
• In a major boost for oil stocks for the first week of 2026, Chevron, ConocoPhillips and Valero Energy gained 9% each, while ExxonMobil shares gained nearly 4% in overnight trading.
• According to CNBC, U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude was up 11 cents at $57.43 a barrel and Brent crude futures rose 17 cents to $60.92 a barrel by 7:24 p.m. ET.

With pre-market trading set to open, overnight action suggested U.S. oil majors could add more than $100 billion in combined market capitalization following weekend developments in Venezuela, as the United States moves to rebuild the South American nation’s energy infrastructure.

In the early hours of Saturday, the U.S. conducted a military operation in Venezuela and arrested President Nicolás Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores. U.S. officials said Maduro is being held at the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn and faces charges related to drug trafficking and weapons offenses.

U.S. President Donald Trump on Saturday reportedly said that American firms will spend several billion dollars on rebuilding Venezuela’s energy resources following the arrest. Aboard Air Force One, Trump said the oil companies were informed both before and after the operation. “They want to go in, and they’re going to do a great job for the people of Venezuela,” he reportedly added.

Oil Stock Moves

In a major boost for oil stocks for the first week of 2026, Chevron, ConocoPhillips and Valero Energy gained 9% each, while ExxonMobil shares gained nearly 4%, and Marathon Petroleum Corp gained more than 9% in overnight trading, according to Yahoo Finance.

Oilfield services stocks also saw a surge following developments in Venezuela, with Halliburton shares jumping 11% and SLB rising 12% during overnight trading as of 3:20 a.m. ET.

Oil Prices

Oil prices also saw a boost after the U.S. airstrike on OPEC-member Venezuela. According to CNBC, U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude was up 11 cents at $57.43 a barrel and Brent crude futures rose 17 cents to $60.92 a barrel by 7:24 p.m. ET.

What Are Retail Traders Thinking?

Retail sentiment on ConocoPhillips improved to ‘extremely bullish’ from ‘bullish’ a week ago, with message volumes at ‘extremely high’ levels, according to data from Stocktwits.

While sentiment on both ExxonMobil and Chevron jumped to ‘extremely bullish’ from ‘bearish’ a week ago. On the other hand, retail sentiment on SLB and Halliburton also improved to ‘extremely bullish’ from ‘bullish’ territory a day ago.

Retail sentiment on the United States Oil Fund ETF was in the ‘extremely bullish’ territory compared to ‘bearish’ a week ago.

Shares of ExxonMobil have gained over 14% in the last 12 months while Chevron’s stock has jumped 6.3% for the same period. SLB’s stock has gained nearly 4% and Halliburton has seen a 7% increase in the past year.

For updates and corrections, email newsroom[at]stocktwits[dot]com.

Also See: Rocket Lab’s 2026 Opens With A 9% Pop, An Insider Sale — And Neutron Launch Looming Large

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