The U.S. is weighing options for dealing with high oil prices, slowing its nearly 1 percent rally

On Monday (November 8), U.
S.
oil rose $0.
68, or 0.
81%, to settle at $81.
93 per barrel
.
Brent oil rose $0.
69, or 0.
83 percent, to close at $83.
43 a barrel
.
Earlier, both contracts rose more than
$1 at one point.
Markets were sideways for much of Monday afternoon, with investors waiting to see if the U.
S.
would release crude from strategic reserves and, if so, how large
.

U.
S
.
Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm said President Joe Biden could make an announcement this week in response to high oil and gasoline prices.
Granholm did not specify any specific measures, but the United States has said releasing the Strategic Petroleum Reserve is an option
it is considering.
Some analysts say Biden may tap into the Strategic Petroleum Reserve
.

John Kilduff, founding partner of Again Capital LLC, said only the U.
S.
and other oil-consuming countries working together can drive prices down significantly, and they have to make big moves to really make an impact
.
If this can be done, then see a repeat of last week's sell-off; But if it doesn't, it will be a buying opportunity
.

The Biden administration is awaiting a report on Tuesday before deciding whether to tap the Strategic Petroleum Reserve to combat high gasoline prices
.
The report will elaborate on the government's outlook
on energy prices, consumption and supply.
Last month, the report predicted gasoline and crude prices would begin to decline
next year as the oil market returned to its gluttony.
Since the report's release on Oct.
13, U.
S.
benchmark crude prices have topped $85 a barrel as global oil demand recovers faster
from the pandemic than energy production.

Crude inventories in the U.
S.
Strategic Petroleum Reserve fell by 3.
14 million barrels last week, the biggest weekly decline since July 2017, and inventories have fallen to their lowest level
since 2003, according to the U.
S.
Department of Energy.
As of Nov.
5, the U.
S.
Strategic Petroleum Reserve totaled 609.
4 million barrels, of which 356.
9 million barrels were sour crude
.
Weekly data
will be released on Wednesday.

However, Saudi Arabia supported oil prices last weekend with some of the sharpest increase in official selling prices in decades; Despite the price increase, Asian buyers are likely to fulfill their purchase contracts in full next month, indicating strong
market demand.

Meanwhile, U.
S.
President Joe Biden on Saturday praised Congress for passing the long-delayed $1 trillion infrastructure bill
.
The bill is likely to boost growth and demand
for fuel.
Phil Flynn, senior analyst at Price Futures Group, said: "The current global supply is outstripping demand, and the Build Better Future program is likely to exacerbate the situation, and the Biden administration can do little to meet this demand
.
" ”