As the US strategic petroleum reserve (SPR) approaches capacity (721.5 million barrels filled out of a total possible 727 million, and will be filled by January 2010), the federal government will fade out of the oil-buying business. Some bearish traders believe that this factor can weigh in on prices, since most petroleum stocks in the United States are government-held rather than private. Bullish traders have also used the filling of the Chinese SPR as a reason that oil should go much higher.

How did it get here, and where is it going? What a difference a year makes. While March lions and April showers were at work in 2008, so were these factors in the U.S. and global economies:

It’s no secret that the US – the world’s biggest energy consumer – is in a fix over its energy supplies. Foreigners provide about 70% of its energy needs.

Martin Katusa, writing for The Daily Reckoning, says what is less well-known is that almost half America’s energy needs is satisfied by countries hostile to, or with the potential to be hostile to, the US.

This means America’s quest for new oil will be vital in the years to come. And Martin says the smart money is not on the oil majors but on the small, more agile oil explorers targeting under-explored areas of the globe…