By Aaron Sheldrick

TOKYO (Reuters – Oil prices stabilized Friday after a day filled with wild swings triggered by the chance that major countries would take coordinated measures to reduce their official crude oil reserves.

After falling to an eight-week low on Thursday, the price of a barrel was $0.3% higher at $81.52 per barrel by 0145 GMT. Then it rose 28 cents to $18.52 per barrel.

The barrel was closing at $79.20, up 19cs. After having traded in a greater than $2 range during the previous session, before close. Both barrels are expected to decline for the fourth consecutive week.

The market gyrations were triggered by a Reuters report which stated that the United States asked Japan, China and other large buyers to participate in a release from crude stockpiles of Strategic Petroleum Reserves.

Fitch Solutions commodity analysts stated that the market is fundamentally tight, and volumes being released would not significantly alter global balance. As such, any price drop will be minimal in scale and not last long.

Biden’s call for a coordinated oil release has been seen by the OPEC+ production organization as a signal that the group should increase output in order to alleviate concerns about high fuel prices, especially among the largest economies of the world, such as the United States and China.

OPEC+ is a grouping of Russia, the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries, and other producers. Analysts say this has allowed prices to rebound from the lows of the first stages of the coronavirus epidemic.

Data showing that Saudi Arabia’s September oil exports reached an 8-month peak helped to keep prices down.