Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida stated on Monday that Japan will urge oil producers to increase production and take necessary steps to alleviate the impacts on industries affected by the recent rise in energy costs. Kishida mentioned that he instructed his cabinet to take "necessary measures flexibly" to mitigate the pain caused by soaring oil prices, highlighting the growing concern among policymakers about the potential harm to Japan's fragile economic recovery.
He told reporters, "We are closely monitoring the impact of oil price movements on local industries and people's livelihoods." Global commodity inflation and a weak yen have led to increased costs for raw material imports for companies, exacerbating issues for the world's third-largest economy, which has seen exports and production affected by supply chain disruptions in Asia.
Oil prices surged to their highest levels in years on Monday as demand continues to recover from the COVID-19 pandemic. As of 01:11 GMT, Brent crude futures rose by 87 cents or 1% to $85.73 per barrel, marking the highest price since October 2018. Meanwhile, U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures increased by $1.12 or 1.4% to $83.40 per barrel, the highest level since October 2014. Brent and WTI contracts have risen by at least 3% in the past week.
