IEA Releases Huge Oil Stockpile to Calm Global Markets

The International Energy Agency has decided to make a record‑sized move by putting 400 million barrels of oil into the market. This is the biggest emergency release it has ever carried out, and it aims to soothe the shock caused by fighting in Iran. The agency did not give a specific date for when the barrels will hit sellers; instead, it said each of its 32 member nations will decide a suitable timetable based on their own needs. Most members are wealthy countries from Europe, North America and East Asia. The IEA’s job is to keep energy supply steady worldwide. It was created in 1974 after Arab oil producers cut supplies in protest of U. S. aid to Israel during the 1973 war. The agency’s executive director said that the conflict in the Middle East is hurting oil and gas markets, making energy more expensive and threatening global growth. He announced that all member states agreed to open the largest emergency oil stockpile ever. The IEA already holds more than 1. 2 billion barrels of public emergency reserves, plus another 600 million barrels held by industry under government orders.The release is meant to counter the immediate supply gaps, but the real fix depends on shipping traffic resuming through the Strait of Hormuz. That narrow waterway, which links the Persian Gulf and the Gulf of Oman, normally carries about 20 % of world oil. Because shippers fear attacks from Iran, tanker traffic has stopped for now. Japan’s prime minister said his country might release oil from its own reserves as early as next week, pointing to how much it relies on Middle‑Eastern supplies. Experts say the Strait’s shutdown is the largest supply shock in history. Consulting firms Rapidan Energy Group and Wood Mackenzie noted that even if the IEA used all its resources, it would still fall short of covering the nearly 20 million barrels per day that normally pass through. The agency’s chief warned that Middle‑Eastern producers are cutting output and refineries are being hit, which hurts diesel and jet fuel supplies. Ongoing attacks damage energy infrastructure across the region.