High oil prices delay building oil reserve

China may have to indefinitely delay filling its strategic oil reserve because of record high world prices, state media said, quoting project officials at a business conference Thursday. "We won't be building stockpiles at such high prices," said Hu Dinging, head of the energy bureau at the National Development and Reform Commission. China seeks to stockpile up to 100m barrels of petroleum, about a month's national consumption. The strategic reserve is part of a plan to ensure the hurtling economy can be cushioned against interruptions of foreign supplies or possible shocks.