White House considers tapping oil reserves

WASHINGTON (AFP) – The United States has not ruled out tapping strategic oil reserves in the face of spiking oil prices, White House chief of staff William Daley said Sunday.

“Well, we’re looking at the options. The issue of the reserves is one we’re considering,” Daley told NBC’s “Meet the Press.”

“There’s a bunch of factors that have to be looked at. And it is just not the price,” but also uncertainty stemming from unrest in the oil-rich Middle East and North Africa, he stressed.

Daley said President Barack Obama was “extremely concerned” about the rising price of oil and its impact on the struggling US economy.

The White House economic team has been working with international organizations to devise a coordinated response to oil prices, he said.

Friday’s price for light sweet crude hit levels not seen since September 2008, closing at 104.42 dollars.

The price has jumped more than 21 percent over the last two weeks amid regional turmoil and increasing international demand.

On Thursday, Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner said the reserves, paired with increased capacity around the world, could pump enough oil to limit price shocks.

“There is considerable spare oil production capacity globally, and we and other major economies possess substantial strategic reserves of oil,” Geithner told Congress.

“If necessary, those reserves could be mobilized to help mitigate the effect of a severe, sustained supply disruption.”