There was broad agreement among the Group of Seven finance ministers on Monday not to release strategic oil reserves just yet, a G7 official said.
G7 finance ministers held a teleconference earlier on Monday to discuss a response to the overnight surge in oil prices caused by the U.S.-Israeli war on Iran.
They said in a statement they were ready to take “necessary measures” to support the global supply of energy, including the release of stockpiles, but stopped short of doing it now.
“There was broad consensus on this,” one G7 official with insight into the G7 finance ministers’ discussions told Reuters. “It was not that someone was against, it’s just about timing. More analysis is needed,” the official said.
G7 energy ministers are to hold a teleconference on the same issue on Tuesday and G7 leaders later this week, the official said.
“In my opinion the final decision will be by the leaders,” the official said.
The G7 comprises the United States, Canada, Japan, Italy, Britain, Germany and France.
(Reporting by Jan Strupczewski; editing by Philip Blenkinsop)