Reply #10: These stockpiles aren't that large compared to world output and demand. [View All]

Sure, they're very large, but they can't meet national demand for a prolonged peiod. They are a short-term strategic measure.

However, there are good reasons why it is wise to stockpile oil. For a start, you might be getting a bargain if prices continue to rise, but remember that that bargain decreases every day with the cost of storage (which is high), unless the price of oil rises faster.

A stockpile could guard against a limited national oil crisis - for instance if there was a natural or man-made disaster at an oil refinery in the US that severely disrupted supply. Or a similar crisis in the Middle East. But the stockpile would not last long.

The US cannot "grab all the oil". For a start, there's nowhere to put it and no way to ship it. Remember that the amount sold and where that is sold and the price it is sold at is not by and large set by the US. That's OPEC's decision, and Chinese money is as good as Uncle Sam's.