Oil fluctuated between small gains and losses as China said it was working to release oil from strategic reserves.

Futures in New York on Thursday were trading around $78 per barrel.

Oil prices depend on how much China will be able to provide from reserves

This was the result of the long-awaited cooperation between China and the United States in order to curb electricity prices. China's actions follow a virtual summit between U.S. President Joe Biden and Chinese President Xi Jinping earlier this week, at which energy supplies were discussed.

With rising inflation in the global economy, key oil consumers are trying to influence prices. The International Energy Agency said this week that current market tensions are starting to ease as global production increases and volumes of oil transported by sea have increased sharply in recent weeks.

"It looks like the release of the SPR will happen soon," said Giovanni Staunovo, a spokesman for UBS Group AG. "The only question is when it will happen and how much oil they will release."

Earlier this year, China tapped its national crude oil reserves to lower domestic prices and also made a private sale from the reserves. On Thursday, a spokeswoman for the reserve bureau said that more detailed information about the volume and date of the sale will appear on its website in due course.

In the physical market, there is growing concern about the demand for oil in the country, as spot premiums for a key Russian grade preferred by Chinese independent refiners have fallen by more than $1 per barrel due to the likelihood of a new tax investigation, according to traders. Earlier this week, the variety was trading at its highest premium since January 2020.