Venezuelan oil shipments to the United States have fallen to just 56 percent of their 2016 average, cargo-tracking data from Bloomberg has revealed , as sanctions against Caracas hinder oil sales from PDVSA. Washington imposed a round of sanctions against the Venezuelan government this August, including a ban on dealings in new debt or equity issued by state oil firm Petroleos de Venezuela SA (PDVSA) or the government. Ever since, U.S. refiners have found it increasingly difficult to secure the letters of intent that are traditionally used to pay for crude cargoes. U.S. banks are simply getting more and more reluctant to conduct any business that includes the Venezuelan state oil company. What’s worse, though, is that the quality of Venezuelan crude sent north is becoming worse. According to Bloomberg, one U.S. refiner said it rejected a Venezuelan oil cargo because it was mixed with four times more water […]