By Benoît Morenne

Energy Secretary Chris Wright said that the disruption to global energy flows from the chokehold in the Strait of Hormuz would be a "short term" one, and that energy prices haven't risen high enough yet to drive a meaningful reduction in fuel consumption-something economists describe as "demand destruction."

Wright made the comments in Houston at the CERAWeek by S&P Global conference, where the global energy community has gathered this week.

He said the Trump administration had taken steps to mitigate the crisis, such as helping oil flow into Asian refineries and releasing crude from strategic reserves. He said oil from the U.S. Strategic Petroleum Reserve had started flowing on Friday afternoon and noted Japan has also moved quickly to release oil from its own stocks.

Wright said the U.S. would be able to push 1 million to 1. 5 million barrels of oil a day from the Gulf Coast salt caverns where national oil stocks are stored, and that the rate of flow could possibly be increased to close to 3 million barrels a day. "Things are being done," he said.

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(END) Dow Jones Newswires

March 23, 2026 10:42 ET (14:42 GMT)

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