Japan’s Prime Minister Fumio Kishida said on Saturday that the government was considering releasing crude oil from its strategic reserves, joining the US and China in a coordinated effort to curb rising energy prices that had been fueling inflation. Previously, the Biden administration requested big oil importers such as China, Japan, South Korea, and India to consider tapping their oil reserves to tame an overheated oil market. The calls followed a resistance by OPEC+ to boost supply faster.
Kishida’ remarks followed the announcement of a ¥56 trillion ($491 billion) fiscal package, which covers support for businesses grappling with rising fuel prices. One option includes using the proceeds from a sale of a portion of the oil reserves as subsidies to ease gasoline prices. The government is also weighing the possibility of reducing the number of days oil reserves are supposed to last. Currently, the government is obliged to keep an oil reserve enough to last at least 90 days, while private businesses need to keep it for at least 70 days.
