Oil prices slump to six-week lows as US and China join forces to release reserves
Oil prices slid to six-week lows before recovery, as the world’s two largest economies move to release their reserves to cool down global price rises.
China’s state reserve bureau told Reuters it would release some of its crude reserves following a rare request from President Joe Biden’s administration.
The US is aiming to push back against multiple rallies over recent months, which led to three-year price-highs in October.
Brent Crude has fallen $80.32 while WTI Crude stumbled to $78.08 on Thursday.
The US has also asked big oil buyers such as India and Japan to consider releasing stocks of crude.
The White House’s political positioning reflects Biden’s frustration with the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and its allies such as Russia.
They have rebuffed the president’s requests to speed up oil production as the world economy rebounds from the pandemic.
OPEC and other major producers including Russia, known collectively as OPEC+, have been gradually unwinding record production cuts made in 2020.
But the organisation has only been raising output by 400,000 barrels per day per month.
They have argued the rebound in crude demand could be fragile and there were already signs of a surplus building in 2022.
The slide in oil prices also comes ahead of the mid-term elections next year.
U.S. President Joe Biden is fending off political pressure over rising gasoline prices since the recovery.