Overview
- Japan, which began releasing state-held oil Thursday, is drawing about 30 days of supply from 11 government bases and selling roughly 8.5 million kiloliters to domestic wholesalers.
- Officials already freed 15 days of private-sector stocks on March 16, with a first-ever draw from producer-held reserves in Japan set for later in March covering about five days of demand.
- Japan’s action forms part of the International Energy Agency’s 400 million-barrel emergency release, to which Tokyo is contributing nearly 80 million barrels of mostly crude.
- Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi asked IEA chief Fatih Birol to prepare for a second coordinated release if needed, and Birol said the agency stands ready to move forward.
- Traffic through the Strait of Hormuz remains disrupted, with 45 Japan-related vessels stranded and pump prices hitting records, so the government is pairing stock sales with renewed fuel subsidies to ease costs for drivers and businesses.