As oil prices, a key indicator of perceived inflation, are rising as the November midterm elections are three weeks away, President Joe Biden is launching an additional strategic oil reserve.
As the high price issue, an economic issue, has become a hot topic in the election, the Democratic Party’s support is waning, so it is an emergency response.
White House press secretary Carine Jean-Pierre said at a briefing on the 18th that when asked regarding the announcement of the release of additional strategic oil reserves, “there will be an announcement tomorrow (19th).”
“President Biden will share more regarding what[the government]is doing and what he will do to bring down oil prices,” he said.
President Biden criticized the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) Plus’ decision to cut production on the 5th and ordered that the issue of releasing an additional 10 million barrels of strategic oil in November should be considered.
Previously, US media reported that President Biden is planning to release additional strategic oil reserves soon.
Strategic oil reserves are oil stored in salt caves in Texas and Louisiana to respond to emergencies where oil supplies are suddenly cut off.
It is also a tool that the president, the head of the US administration, can use in his own right to curb soaring prices.
In May of this year, President Biden began to release 180 million barrels of strategic oil for the purpose of stabilizing prices.
Archyde.com reported that the strategic oil reserve to be released this time is 14 million barrels remaining, the largest of its kind this year. According to the U.S. Energy Information Administration, the average U.S. oil consumption last year was regarding 20 million barrels per day.
The Biden administration is also discussing with oil companies a plan to release and sell an additional 26 million barrels in fiscal 2023 (October 1, 2022 – September 30, 2023) as directed by Congress. .
President Biden’s release of strategic oil is a measure to curb rising consumer prices, one of the major complaints among Americans today.
The United States is suffering from high inflation due to excessive monetary policy easing and changes in the supply chain of raw materials following the war in Ukraine.
In particular, the rise in gasoline prices is the main cause of the rise in consumer prices and is an essential commodity that serves as a standard for the price Americans experience in their daily lives.
According to the American Automobile Association (AAA), the average price of gasoline in the U.S. was $3.89 per gallon today, up 20 cents from last month and 56 cents from the same period last year.
Gasoline milk prices soared to $5 per gallon in June of this year. Currently, the White House is said to see the $4 as a marginal line.
Archyde.com and Bloomberg reported that the plan would take effect before the November 8 US midterm elections.
The U.S. midterm elections are a major political event in which 35 out of 100 U.S. Senators, 435 U.S. House of Representatives, and 34 out of 50 governors are elected.
In particular, it is an interim evaluation of the incumbent president and has the meaning of looking forward to the next presidential election.
The Republican Party, the opposition party in the United States, is using high prices as a key criticism of the ruling party in order to win a majority in the House and Senate in the midterm elections.
President Biden also had a conflict with uncooperative Middle Eastern oil producers because of the effect of inflation on public opinion and pressured the oil industry.
A source told Archyde.com regarding the release of the strategic oil reserves, “It’s a short time before the midterm elections to lower fuel prices, but it will at least show that we’re working on it.”
The Biden administration is also discussing controlling oil exports to stabilize oil prices, but it is reported that an internal agreement has not yet been reached.
