DUBAI — Saudi Arabia’s Energy Minister Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman said on Monday that he was "always comfortable" with oil prices, the Economic Times reported.

He added that it was the US government's prerogative whether to release supply from strategic petroleum reserves.

President Joe Biden's administration said in November it would release about 50 million barrels from its reserves in conjunction with other consumer nations, such as China, India and South Korea, to combat the rising cost of fuel.

"I'm always comfortable," the Saudi minister told reporters in Dubai in response to a question about prices continuing to rise. "The word 'concern' is not in my vocabulary."

The minister was attending the opening of the Abu Dhabi Sustainability Week Summit at the Expo 2020 site.

OPEC+, headed by Saudi Arabia and Russia, next meets to discuss its oil-production strategy on Feb. 2. Crude prices have risen to around $85 a barrel this year.

Sources told Reuters that China plans to release oil reserves around the Lunar New Year holidays between Jan. 31 and Feb. 6 as part of a plan coordinated by the United States with other major consumers to reduce global prices. — Agencies