U.S. considers tapping oil reserves

WASHINGTON, March 7 (UPI) -- Washington must consider all options to compensate for the economic pressure of rising oil prices, the White House chief of staff said.

Concern is mounting that rising oil prices could undermine economic recovery in the United States. Key stock indexes suggest the U.S. economy is recovering from a lengthy recession, though high oil and gasoline prices are taking disposal income out of the pockets of American consumers.

Oil and gasoline prices continued their rise Monday as the situation in Libya, Africa's top oil producer, moved from a protest movement to all out civil war.

White House Chief of Staff William Daley said on NBC's "Meet the Press" on Sunday that U.S. President Barack Obama was considering tapping into the strategic oil reserves to prevent further economic turmoil.

"We are looking at the options," he said. "The issue of the reserves is one we are considering."

Tapping into the millions of barrels of oil kept in underground salt caverns is exceptionally rare for the U.S. government though Daley said "all matters have to be on the table" given the current economy.

U.S. Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner in written testimony before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee last week said major world economies had "substantial" reserves at their disposal to cope with an oil shock.

The Strategic Petroleum Reserve contains more than 700 million barrels of oil. It was last tapped in the aftermath of Hurricane Ike in 2008.