Venezuela's Oil Falls to $42.44

Venezuela's petroleum export basket dropped to $42.44 per barrel this week from $47.05 last week to reach a 5-1/2-year low, the Petroleum Ministry said on Friday.

The South American OPEC member's basket, which includes crude oil and refined products, trades at a discount to other benchmarks because of its higher content of heavy oil.

Venezuelan oil prices averaged $88.42 last year, down from $98.08 in 2013.

The tumble in oil prices is a blow to Venezuela's finances as it struggles to cover arrears with companies, bond payments, arbitration awards, hefty social projects, and spending ahead of this year's parliamentary elections.

Global oil markets resumed their slide on Friday, with Brent and U.S. crude hitting April 2009 lows and ending down for a seventh straight week, although prices recovered from their lows after a sharp drop in the U.S. oil rig count.

(Writing by Alexandra Ulmer; Editing by Leslie Adler)