By Jarrett Renshaw
WASHINGTON (Reuters) -The White House invited executives from an array of U.S. industries and businesses, including energy, food, and banks, to a briefing Monday on the Russia-Ukraine conflict, a White House official said.
The White House officials and Cabinet members will discuss supply chain issues surrounding Russia’s Feb. 24 invasion of Ukraine and ways to lessen the economic shocks, a source familiar with the plan told Reuters.
The off-the-record briefing will be led by National Economic Council Director Brian Deese, national security adviser Jake Sullivan, Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen and Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo, the White House official said.
The meeting will include representatives from Pattern Energy, Invenergy, ExxonMobil Corp, ConocoPhillips, Visa Inc <V.N , JPMorgan Chase & Co, Bank of America Corp, Land O’Lakes Inc, Cargill Inc, Dow Inc and U.S. Steel, the official said on condition of anonymity.
President Joe Biden and his fellow Democrats have been pushing the chief executives of major oil companies to increase production amid rising prices at the gas pumps.
Biden has blamed the latest spike on Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. The United States has imposed several rafts of sanctions on Russia over its attack, including an immediate ban on Russian oil and other energy imports.
U.S. consumer prices, including for rent and food, have also surged, and inflation is poised to accelerate even further as Russia’s war against Ukraine drives up the costs of crude oil and other commodities.
The conflict has added to the trade chaos that followed the global economy’s emergence from COVID-19 pandemic lockdowns. Asia-Europe routes have been worst hit by issues, including acute port congestion and cargo disruption, due to the closure of Russian airspace, a JPMorgan analysis showed.
(Reporting by Jarrett Renshaw; Writing by Doina Chiacu; Editing by Alex Richardson, Kirsten Donovan and Jonathan Oatis)
