President Bush will today direct the US energy department to temporarily halt deliveries of oil to a strategic reserve, an administration official said.
The official said Mr Bush will tell the energy department to suspend deliveries to the Strategic Petroleum Reserve this summer while supplies are tight "and defer the deposits until the fall, and then you have more oil on the market.
"That helps address high oil prices which in turn helps address high gas prices," the official said.
The Strategic Petroleum Reserve is an emergency stockpile of oil. Mr Bush will not direct any tapping of the strategic reserve, the official said.
