IEA Holds Emergency Meeting To Tackle Soaring Oil Prices: Reuters

The International Energy Agency (IEA) is set to hold an emergency meeting Friday among consuming nations to discuss a new release of strategic reserves alongside a plan by the United States to pump massive supplies starting in May to cool soaring oil prices, reported Reuters.

Global oil prices soared more than 30% this year; major consumers seek ways to ease the impact on their economies after top producers group OPEC+ stuck to plans to add a modest 432,000 barrels per day of supply in May.

According to the IEA, Western sanctions on Russia after their invasion of Ukraine are expected to see a loss of about 3 million barrels per day (BPD) of Russian oil in April.

President Joe Biden authorized the largest release ever from the U.S. Strategic Petroleum Reserves to fill the shortfall.

Related: Biden Administration Mulls Releasing 180M Barrels Of Oil From Strategic Petroleum Reserve: Reuters

Several members in the Asia Pacific have said they would support the IEA's initiatives.

"It is not clear whether the release will be done by the U.S. alone or the United States will make a proposal at the IEA meeting," Japanese industry minister Koichi Hagiuda told a news conference. "In any case, we would like to act appropriately while keeping an eye on the international situation," Hagiuda stated.

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