President Donald Trump warned that US oil reserves will run out in approximately four weeks, a statement that underscores just how dire the domestic energy supply picture has become amid escalating geopolitical tensions centered on the Strait of Hormuz.
The warning isn’t pure hyperbole. Analysts project that commercial oil storage tanks could reach critically low levels by early July 2026, which, measured from mid-June, puts the timeline right in that four-week window Trump referenced.
A reserve tank running on fumes
The Strategic Petroleum Reserve, America’s emergency oil piggy bank created after the 1970s Arab oil embargo, has been hemorrhaging barrels. Roughly 172 million barrels have been released under the Trump administration to counter supply shortfalls tied to the Iran conflict and disruptions around the Strait of Hormuz.
To put that in perspective, the SPR is now approaching levels not seen since the 1980s.
