INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
Rich countries will tap an additional 120 million barrels of oil from emergency reserves in a bid to calm crude prices that have soared
following Russia's invasion of Ukraine, the International Energy Agency said on Wednesday.The move includes 60 million barrels to be
collective oil stock release of 120 million barrels (including 60 million barrels contributed by the United States as part of its overall
draw from its Strategic Petroleum Reserve)", IEA executive director Fatih Birol said in a tweet.Last week, United States President Joe
Biden announced a record release of United States oil onto the market -- one million barrels every day for six months, or a total of more
than 180 million barrels.The 30 other members of the IEA agreed on Friday at an extraordinary ministerial meeting of the 31-nation IEA to
tap their emergency oil reserves again but did not disclose by how much.The IEA members -- which include the United States, European
countries, Australia and Japan, among others -- had already pledged last month to release 62.7 million barrels of oil.Its members hold
emergency stockpiles totalling 1.5 billion barrels.On March 7, oil prices flirted with historic highs last seen during the 2008 financial
North Sea Brent crude closed at $139.13 a barrel and West Texas Intermediate hit $130.50.Prices have since retreated but were still hovering
at around $100 a barrel on Wednesday.
