IEA to release 60 million barrels from oil stockpiles

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PARIS— Reuters
Published Thursday, Jun. 23, 2011 9:47AM EDT
Last updated Thursday, Jun. 23, 2011 10:02AM EDT

The International Energy Agency will release 60 million barrels of oil from strategic government stockpiles held by industrialized consumer nations in a bid to push down oil prices, the 28-member group announced on Thursday.

The announcement comes after OPEC failed to raise production at a meeting on June 8 and despite assurances from OPEC’s biggest producer Saudi Arabia that it would lift supplies unilaterally.

“Greater tightness in the oil market threatens to undermine the fragile global economic recovery,” the IEA said.

The IEA said it would release 2 million barrels a day over 30 days onto the world market to fill the gap in supplies left by the disruption to Libya’s output. Libya was exporting about 1.2 million a day.

Oil prices traded $5 (U.S.) lower for benchmark Brent crude at just over $109 a barrel.