-- China, the US, and Japan held the world's largest strategic oil inventories heading into 2026, underscoring the countries' central role in cushioning global markets against supply shocks, according to Energy Information Administration strategists in a note on Monday.
The EIA analysts said the stockpiles were built before a coordinated emergency release agreed in March 2026 by members of the International Energy Agency following the outbreak of the Middle East conflict that led to the closure of the Strait of Hormuz.
China has emerged as the world's largest holder of strategic crude, with inventories reaching about 1.4 billion barrels by the end of 2025. The EIA said China added an average of 1.1 million barrels per day to its stocks throughout last year.
"Prior to the Iran conflict, preliminary government data indicate that China has continued building inventories in 2026," the agency said.
The US ranked second, with its Strategic Petroleum Reserve holding about 413 million barrels at the end of 2025, well below its maximum capacity of 714 million barrels.
The EIA said stocks rose above 415 million barrels in March 2026 before the coordinated release and stood at about 409 million barrels as of Apr. 10.
"The SPR is separate from the more than 400 million barrels of commercial crude oil inventories in the US," the EIA analysts said.
Japan held the third-largest government-controlled reserves at 263 million barrels. The country also mandates additional industry stockpiles equivalent to about 70 days of demand, though these are not included in official strategic totals.
The OECD countries across Europe held an estimated 179 million barrels in government inventories, while South Korea maintained about 79 million barrels.
Outside the OECD, the EIA forecast that strategic reserves will remain difficult to assess due to limited transparency and overlap between commercial and state-controlled storage.
Saudi Arabia held a projected 82 million barrels in onshore inventories, excluding volumes stored abroad, such as in South Korea and Japan, the EIA said. The UAE held about 34 million barrels in on-land storage, with additional capacity at Fujairah not publicly disclosed.
Iran's onshore inventories were projected at 71 million barrels, though additional crude stored overseas, including in China, could not be quantified.
India held about 21.4 million barrels in its strategic petroleum reserve as of March 2025, according to the Indian Strategic Petroleum Reserve, and has been exploring options to expand storage capacity both domestically and abroad.