This is CNBC's Morning Squawk newsletter. Subscribe here to receive future editions in your inbox. Happy Thursday. If you can't already tell from reading this newsletter, I'm a big cliché user. So with the S&P 500 's first losing day of the year, maybe traders can seek solace from the age-old saying: It's a marathon, not a sprint. Stock futures are lower this morning after a mixed session. Here are five key things investors need to know to start the trading day:
1. Market movers
Secretary of Health and Human Services Robert F. Kennedy Jr. speaks during the daily briefing in the Brady Briefing Room of the White House in Washington, DC, on Jan. 7, 2026. Mandel Ngan | AFP | Getty Images
2. Refined plans
Cabimas, Venezuela, oil pump jack with de color of the Venezuelan flag is seen and oil field. Jose Bula Urrutia | Universal Images Group | Getty Images
As the fallout from the U.S.' overthrow of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro continues, all eyes are on the country's oil. Trump on Tuesday said Venezuela would turn over up to 50 million barrels of sanctioned oil to the U.S., but sources close to the White House told CNBC yesterday that those were only the first barrels and that shipments would continue indefinitely. The White House said yesterday that Trump reserves the right to use military force to protect U.S. oil workers in Venezuela. The South American country would also use revenue from its oil sales to purchase American products, Trump said on social media. Meanwhile, Energy Secretary Chris Wright told CNBC yesterday that debts owed by Venezuela to ConocoPhillips and ExxonMobil were not an immediate priority for the Trump administration. CEOs from both companies, as well as a representative from Chevron , are expected to meet with Trump on Friday.
3. Greenland, red light
Residential buildings along the coastline in Nuuk, Greenland, on Saturday, May 3, 2025. Carsten Snejbjerg | Bloomberg | Getty Images
Moving across the Atlantic Ocean: Secretary of State Marco Rubio told reporters yesterday that he would meet with Danish officials about Greenland next week. News of the talks comes as Trump reiterates his threats to take over the island to bolster U.S. national security. But as CNBC's Dan Mangan notes, Denmark's leaders aren't taking these comments on the chin. On Tuesday, Danish Defense Minister Troels Lund Poulsen said the European country would spend the equivalent of $13.8 billion to rearm Greenland given "the serious security situation we find ourselves in." In Washington, some congressional Republicans are brushing off Trump's threats. As Rep. Ryan Zinke, R-Mont., put it, Trump sometimes negotiates using an "everything is on the table" strategy.
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