Following the continued escalation of Middle East hostilities last week, which pushed the international crude oil benchmark Brent past the $100 mark, U.S. energy policy has entered &#34;emergency mode.&#34; Energy Secretary Wright emphasized that the government has tools to cope with oil price shocks while also attempting to downplay their impact.
According to CCTV News, on Monday the 23rd local time, U.S. Energy Secretary Wright stated that the Strategic Petroleum Reserve might be released again, but he considers the possibility to be extremely low.
Speaking at the CERAWeek energy conference in Houston, Wright said that although oil prices have surged recently, they have not yet reached a level high enough to cause &#34;demand destruction.&#34; The U.S. government is mitigating market shocks by releasing the Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR) while urging the industry to accelerate production increases.
Wright revealed that the U.S. has already started an SPR release of 1 million to 1.5 million barrels per day and can expand this to 3 million barrels per day if necessary to stabilize global supply chains, particularly for Asian refineries that have been most affected.
Multiple media outlets noted that against the backdrop of shipping disruptions in the Strait of Hormuz caused by the conflict between the U.S., Israel, and Iran, and global energy supplies under pressure, the U.S. use of strategic reserves is intended to &#34;suppress oil prices and stabilize market expectations,&#34; though oil prices still face short-term volatility at high levels.
During early U.S. trading hours on Monday, according to CCTV News, U.S. President Trump told the media that the U.S. and Iran had engaged in &#34;very good and productive&#34; dialogue over the past two days, and the U.S. would &#34;postpone for 5 days&#34; the strikes on Iranian power plants. After Trump shared this information, Brent crude, which was above $110, quickly fell below $100 and has not reclaimed that level since.
<img src="https://imageproxy.pbkrs.com/https://wpimg-wscn.awtmt.com/595d4f87-4189-468b-b23e-f6cadf668af0.jpeg?x-oss-process=image/auto-orient,1/interlace,1/resize,w_1440,h_1440/quality,q_95/format,jpg" alt="" original-src="https://imageproxy.pbkrs.com/https://wpimg-wscn.awtmt.com/595d4f87-4189-468b-b23e-f6cadf668af0.jpeg"/>
<h2>Oil Prices Have Not Hit &#34;Demand Destruction&#34;; Policy Still Focused on Stabilizing Supply</h2>
Wright explicitly stated this Monday that although Brent crude recently broke the $100/barrel mark, it has not reached a level high enough to significantly suppress consumption demand; &#34;demand destruction&#34; has not yet appeared.
This assessment conveys two key signals:
<ul>
<li>Policy tolerance remains: The U.S. government believes current price levels, while high, are still within the economy's range of affordability.</li>
<li>Intervention remains supply-side focused: Rather than suppressing demand, there is a preference for stabilizing prices by increasing supply.</li>
</ul>
In terms of market impact, this implies that oil prices lack a strong &#34;policy suppression&#34; signal in the short term, and the price center may maintain high-level volatility rather than falling quickly.
<h2>Strategic Petroleum Reserve Becomes Core Tool, but Release Pace is Controllable</h2>
Wright emphasized that the U.S. has started using its Strategic Petroleum Reserve and has the capacity to further expand the scale of release, with an initial release of about 1 million–1.5 million barrels per day, and mentioned a potential upper limit of up to 3 million barrels per day.
Previously, the U.S. had provided approximately 45.2 million barrels of reserve crude to several energy companies as part of the first batch of releases.
At the same time, the policy tone has become more cautious. Multiple media outlets cited Wright's statements as saying the U.S. government is unlikely to continue large-scale additional reserve releases; the SPR is viewed more as a &#34;short-term buffer tool&#34; than a long-term price suppression measure.
This means that SPR releases may alleviate supply tightness and be bearish for oil prices in the short term, but medium-to-long-term support for oil prices remains because government reserves are limited and cannot replace supply indefinitely.
<h2>Calling for Oil and Gas Industry Production Increases, Strengthening the &#34;Energy Dominance&#34; Logic</h2>
Beyond utilizing reserves, Wright's core policy orientation remains expanding supply.
In meetings with energy company executives, he urged the industry to:
<ul>
<li>Increase domestic U.S. oil and gas production</li>
<li>Accelerate the restoration and expansion of global supply capacity</li>
<li>Utilize the current high-price window to boost investment and output</li>
</ul>
This statement continues the Trump administration's &#34;energy dominance&#34; strategy—increasing U.S. fossil fuel production to reduce dependence on external supplies and thereby gain greater pricing power in the global energy market.
For the market, this signal generally implies: improved medium-to-long-term supply expectations are bearish for crude oil, but this is difficult to realize quickly in the short term, so oil prices still have high-level support.
<h2>Strait of Hormuz Shock Labeled &#34;Temporary,&#34; Policy Avoids Excessive Panic</h2>
Regarding the market's biggest concern—the blockage of the Strait of Hormuz—Wright described the related impact as &#34;temporary.&#34;
This assessment has two underlying implications:
<ol>
<li>Avoid panic at the policy level to prevent further irrational price increases.</li>
<li>Provide a basis for limited use of reserves, i.e., no need to enter an &#34;extreme emergency state.&#34;</li>
</ol>
However, in reality, approximately 20% of global oil and gas transport relies on this passage. If the blockade persists, it will cause a profound impact on supply.
Consequently, the market shows a typical divergence:
<ul>
<li>Policy Expectations: Controllable shock -&gt; Suppresses further oil price surges.</li>
<li>Geopolitical Risks: High uncertainty -&gt; Provides risk premium support.</li>
</ul>
<h2>Gasoline Prices to Remain High, Political Pressure Rises</h2>
Wright also warned on Monday that U.S. consumers might have to endure &#34;several weeks&#34; of high oil price pressure. This poses a potential risk to the upcoming midterm elections.
Domestic fuel prices in the U.S. have already risen significantly, making energy issues a political focus once again.
This also explains the logic behind the policy mix:
<ul>
<li>Short-term: Release SPR, stabilize the market.</li>
<li>Medium-term: Drive production increases, repair supply.</li>
<li>Political Aspect: Avoid uncontrolled oil prices impacting election outcomes.</li>
</ul>
<h2>Global Coordinated Release and Supply Restructuring Advancing</h2>
It is worth noting that the U.S. is not acting alone.
Two Fridays ago, the International Energy Agency (IEA) announced that 32 member countries had agreed to coordinate the release of a total of 400 million barrels of strategic oil reserves. This is the largest collective release action in the IEA's history. On the same day, the U.S. Department of Energy confirmed that as part of this global coordinated action by the IEA, the U.S. plans to release 172 million barrels of SPR to address the oil price surge caused by U.S. and Israeli airstrikes on Iran.
In addition to multiple IEA members releasing inventories, the U.S. is also exploring alternative supply sources such as Venezuela.
This signifies that the global energy system is entering a &#34;rebalancing phase&#34;: traditional Middle Eastern supply is disrupted; the Western Hemisphere and inventory systems are temporarily stepping in; and energy trade flows are undergoing structural adjustments.

Wright stated that the U.S. has initiated the release of 1 to 1.5 million barrels per day from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR), which can be expanded to 3 million barrels per day if necessary; oil prices have not yet reached a level causing "demand destruction"; the impact of the Strait of Hormuz disruption is "temporary"; U.S. consumers may still have to bear high oil price pressure for "several weeks."

- Following recent escalations in the Middle East, Brent crude oil futures surged past $100, prompting the U.S. Energy Secretary to activate emergency policies to mitigate price impacts.  
- The U.S. has begun releasing between 1 million and 1.5 million barrels per day from its Strategic Petroleum Reserve to stabilize supply, particularly to Asian refineries, with a possible increase to 3 million barrels if necessary.  
- Despite current high prices, the government emphasizes increasing supply rather than directly curbing demand, aiming to maintain market stability amid geopolitical uncertainties affecting oil transport through the Strait of Hormuz.

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U.S. Energy Secretary Says Further Strategic Petroleum Reserve Release Possible, but Likelihood is Very Low