The United States has no plan to release its strategic reserves, and oil prices have rebounded sharply by more than US$3

On Thursday (October 7), US oil rose 1.42 US dollars in late trading, or 1.83%, to close at 78.85 US dollars per barrel. Bilbao oil rose 1.35 US dollars, or 1.67%, to close at 82.43 US dollars per barrel. The U.S. Department of Energy stated that "currently" there is no plan to release strategic oil reserves to curb the rise in gasoline prices, and subsequent oil prices continue to rise. At the same time, progress has been made in the US debt ceiling negotiations, and market risk appetite has increased, which has boosted oil prices.

A report in the British "Financial Times" on Wednesday said that the US Secretary of Energy raised the possibility of releasing the Strategic Petroleum Reserve, and crude oil prices fell by 2.7%. In response to this, the US Department of Energy issued a statement on Thursday: “The Department of Energy continues to monitor global energy market supply and will work with our partner agencies to determine if and when action is required. To protect the American people, all tools in the toolbox are It is under consideration, but there is no plan to take action yet."

The United States also occasionally uses its strategic reserves, usually after hurricanes or other supply disruptions. However, since the end of the 40-year crude oil export ban in 2015, the country has become an important exporter and has never proposed to cut exports. There is speculation about whether the US government is considering using its Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR) or seeking to ban oil exports in order to reduce crude oil prices.

At the same time, US President Biden’s national security adviser on Thursday urged energy suppliers to increase supply to meet demand. He said the United States is worried about their failure to do this. Amrita Sen, chief oil analyst at Energy Aspects Ltd., said the key thing to remember is that the Biden administration is very eager to give consumers cheap gasoline. Therefore, if oil prices continue to rise and overheat, the United States will put pressure on OPEC.

Earlier this week, the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and its allies (OPEC+) agreed to only gradually increase production, pushing crude oil prices to multi-year highs. Due to the tight global supply, the demand from major import markets such as Asian consumer countries has recovered faster than expected after the new crown epidemic, and oil prices have been rising steadily. In a report, ING Group analyst Warren Patterson said that the oil market is tightening in the short term, which means that oil prices will still be well supported before the end of the year.

The market focus now returns to the shortage of global natural gas supply, which is bound to increase the demand for crude oil for power generation this winter. On the 7th local time, the British Gasoline Retailers Association stated that the recovery of fuel supply in some parts of the UK has not been fast enough, especially in the southeastern part of the UK, including London, which has not seen a significant improvement. The chairman of the association, Brian Madsen, said that the current fuel supply situation in the southeast of the UK is the most difficult, and the fuel inventory level is still below the 20% warning line. It can be seen that the region is more affected by the shortage of truck drivers. Gas station inventories in London and the East of England are slightly higher, with a capacity between 20% and 40%.

(U.S. Oil Hour Chart)