Washington, March 12 -- The United States Department of Energy announced its plan to offload 172 million barrels from the strategic petroleum reserve "beginning next week," following significant volatility in oil prices triggered by the ongoing conflict in the Middle East.

In a post to X, the department indicated that the distribution process would "take approximately 120 days to deliver based on planned discharge rates."

Global oil prices have climbed steadily since 28 February, the date US and Israeli forces initiated air strikes against Iran. The strikes, which resulted in the death of Iran's former supreme leader, have since submerged the region into a deep state of war. Iranian retaliatory measures, involving drones and missiles, h...