PDVSA's decision to stop filing with the US Securities and Exchange Commission appears to be a political move to trim the Venezuelan state oil company's exposure to US markets, analysts said.

Venezuelan Energy Minister Rafael Ramirez said PDVSA would no longer file annual reports with the SEC as leftist President Hugo Chavez spars increasingly with Washington over US free-market policies and his strong ties with Cuba.
PDVSA director Eudomario Carruyo said last week the company would buy back $83 million in debt registered with the SEC, which will allow the company to stop filing with the US market watchdog.
PDVSA is currently flush with cash as a result of booming oil prices. The Chavez administration has previously described SEC filing requirements as undue foreign influence in Venezuela's oil industry.