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Trump fact-check: Do the US and Venezuela have 60% of the world鈥檚 oil?

Is Donald Trump right to say the US and Venezuela have 60% of the world鈥檚 oil?

US president Donald Trump has claimed in a speech to the UN that the US and Venezuela combined now have 60% of the world鈥檚 oil.
100% of the team on More or Less were confused.

What measurement was the president using to get to this figure? Barrels of oil produced a day? Reserves of oil in the ground? It鈥檚 hard to make any of these stats add up.

To find out whether there was any truth in the claim, we spoke to energy expert Bill Farren-Price of the Oxford Institute for Energy Studies.

If you spot any numbers you think we should take a look at, email us at moreorless@bbc.co.uk

Presenter: Tim Harford
Producer: Lizzy McNeill
Researcher: Kateryna Pavlyuk
Series Producer: Tom Colls
Editor: Richard Vadon
Sound Mix: Neil Churchill

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9 minutes

Last on

Sun 27 Sep 2026 11:50

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