China's aggressive stockpiling of oil will have serious political and economic ramifications in the U.S., effects that could influence election outcomes and gas-pump prices in both the near term and long term, according to industry expert Chris Faulkner, CEO of Dallas-based Breitling Oil and Gas.

According to the International Energy Agency (IEA) China 2012 Update, China has completed four stockpiling facilities and has begun construction of eight more, for a combined capacity of more than 300 million barrels as part of its Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR) plan. A planned third ...