Authors: JOSH BOAK and COLLEEN LONG

Washington (Associated Press)-President Joe Biden ordered the release of a record 50 million barrels of oil from the U.S. Strategic Reserve on Tuesday, aimed at coordinating with other major energy consumers, including India, the United Kingdom, and China, to reduce gasoline and fuel consumption. Other costs.

The focus of the US action is to help Americans deal with higher fuel and other prices before traveling on Thanksgiving and winter holidays. According to the American Automobile Association, the price of gasoline is about $3.40 per gallon, which is more than 50% higher than a year ago.

"Although our joint action will not solve the problem of high oil prices overnight, it will make a difference," Biden promised in a speech at the White House. "It will take time, but it won't be long before you see the price of gasoline with a full tank drop."

The government will start putting oil on the market in mid-to-late December. Gasoline usually lags behind changes in oil prices, and government officials say this is one of several steps to ultimately reduce costs.

In the days leading up to the announcement of the withdrawal, oil prices have fallen, indicating that investors expect this move may bring 70 to 80 million barrels of oil to the global market. But in the transaction after the news was announced, the price did not fall, but rose by about 2%.

Claudio Galimberti, senior vice president of oil markets at Rystad Energy, said that the market is looking forward to the news and traders may be at a loss when they see the details.

"The problem is that everyone knows that this measure is temporary," Galinberti said. "So once it stops, then if demand continues to be higher than supply as it is now, then you will go back to square one."

Soon after the US announced the news, India stated that it would release 5 million barrels of oil from its strategic reserves. The British government confirmed that it will release up to 1.5 million barrels of oil from its stockpiles. Japan and South Korea are also involved, and US officials said this is the largest coordinated release of global strategic reserves.

Max Blain, a spokesman for British Prime Minister Boris Johnson, said this is a “wise and prudent step to support the global market” during the pandemic recovery. Bryan added that companies in the country will be authorized but not forced to participate in the release.

Despite all the optimistic statements, the actions of the United States and other countries may lead to counter-actions by the Gulf countries, especially Saudi Arabia and Russia. Saudi Arabia and other Gulf countries have made it clear that they intend to control supply to keep prices high for the time being.

In recent days, as news of the upcoming joint release of the US and other countries’ reserves has spread, OPEC stakeholders have issued warnings that these countries may respond in turn, violating their promises to increase supply in the coming months.

Senator John Ballasso of Wyoming was one of the Republicans who criticized Biden's statement. The third Republican in the Senate stated that the fundamental problem is the government's restrictions on domestic production.

"Begging for OPEC and Russia to increase production, using strategic oil reserves now is a desperate attempt to solve the disaster caused by Biden," Barasso said. "They are not a substitute for energy production in the United States."

Biden scrambled to reshape most of his economic agenda around inflation, saying that the $1 trillion infrastructure plan he recently passed will reduce price pressures by improving the efficiency and cost of cargo transportation.

Republican lawmakers criticized government inflation for hitting a 31-year high in October. The consumer price index soared 6.2% from the same period last year, the largest 12-month increase since 1990.

The Strategic Petroleum Reserve is an emergency reserve used to protect the acquisition of oil in the event of natural disasters, national security issues, and other events. These reserves are maintained by the Department of Energy and stored in caves formed in the salt domes along the Gulf Coast of Texas and Louisiana. There are approximately 605 million barrels of oil in the reserves.

The Biden administration believes that this is the right tool to help alleviate supply problems. According to the Energy Information Administration, the average American used 20.7 million barrels of oil a day in September. This means releasing an extra supply equivalent to approximately two and a half days.

Biden said at the White House: "Now, I will do what needs to be done to lower the price you pay at the gas station."

He said the government is also investigating potential price fraud by natural gas companies to squeeze customers while making money by reducing oil costs. Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm (Jennifer Granholm) also said that US companies are part of the problem, and they keep production below pre-pandemic levels to increase profits.

The coronavirus pandemic has swept energy markets everywhere. In April last year, following the economic recession and the decline in economic activity, energy demand collapsed, and oil futures prices turned negative. Energy traders do not want to be trapped by crude oil that they cannot store. However, as the economy recovered and production lags behind, prices jumped to a seven-year high in October.

U.S. production has not resumed. According to data from the Energy Information Administration, the average daily domestic production is about 11 million barrels, which is lower than the 12.8 million barrels before the pandemic.

Americans feel the pressure. For Matt Hebard of Agoura Hills, California, it costs $80 to refuel his SUV. "Everyone cares about gas prices now," he said as he refueled at a gas station in the northwest suburbs of Los Angeles.

He hopes that the president's actions will produce good long-term results.

Meanwhile, Sy Amber is heading to Las Vegas from his home in California. Unfortunately, he spent more money to refuel his car. He said he did not expect Biden's actions to work, and he disagreed with them.

"I am not satisfied with our president," he said.

Congressional Republicans pointed out that Biden’s efforts to minimize drilling and support renewable energy are the reason for the decline in production, although there are multiple market dynamics as fossil fuel prices rise globally.

Biden and government officials insist that extracting more oil from reserves does not conflict with his climate goals, because this short-term solution will encounter specific problems, and climate policy is a long-term solution for decades.

They argue that the government's promotion of renewable energy will ultimately mean that the United States is less dependent on fossil fuels. But this is a politically convenient argument-in simple terms, higher prices will reduce use, and a sharp increase in gasoline prices may force Americans to reduce their dependence on fossil fuels.

The White House’s decision was made after weeks of diplomatic negotiations. According to the White House, Biden and Chinese President Xi Jinping discussed measures to cope with oil supply tensions at a virtual meeting earlier this month and "discussed the importance of taking measures to address global energy supply problems."

The Department of Energy will provide oil from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve in two ways; the White House stated that 32 million barrels of oil will be released in the next few months and the reserves will be restored in the next few years. Another 18 million barrels will be part of oil sales authorized by Congress.

Associated Press writers Cathy Bussewitz and Charles Sheehan are from New York, Jill Lawless is from London, and Matthew Daly and Ellen Knickmeyer are from Washington.

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