Emergency crude oil inventories in the U.S. fell 8.4 million barrels to 434.1 million barrels last week, the lowest since October 1984, Reuters reported, citing data from the U.S. Department of Energy.

The Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR) release for the week ended Sept. 9 was the sharpest since May. That included about 6.3 million barrels of low-sulfur oil and about 2 million barrels of high-sulfur oil.

President Joe Biden in March developed a plan to release 1 million barrels a day for six months from SPR to deal with high U.S. fuel prices, which have contributed to a sharp rise in inflation.

The Biden administration is weighing the need for further SPR releases after the current program ends in October, Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm said last week. An Energy Department spokeswoman later said the White House was not considering new issues beyond 180 million barrels at the time.

It is less likely that the Biden administration will continue to issue from SPR after October if benchmark crude futures continue to fall.