BAKU, Azerbaijan, November 20. In the third quarter of 2023, oil demand in OECD Asia Oceania decreased by 100,000 b/d year-on-year, Trend reports.
According to the International Energy Agency (IEA), this decline was largely attributed to a significant drop in August (down by 320,000 b/d).
The year-on-year decrease for the quarter was primarily centered in Japan (down by 90,000 b/d) and Korea (down by 60,000 b/d), while Australian consumption saw an increase of 30,000 b/d, the agency noted.
Meanwhile, during the reporting period of 2023, naphtha demand saw a significant reduction (down by 130,000 b/d), playing a dominant role in the overall regional decline. In relative terms, this 7-percent fall was only approximately half as substantial as in Europe. The majority of this decline occurred in heavyweight petrochemical producer Korea (down by 90,000 b/d, or 7.3 percent). A similar decrease was observed in Japan (down by 40,000 b/d year-on-year, or 6.6 percent), highlighting the impact of heavily oversupplied global polymer markets.
For 2023, an overall naphtha drop of 60,000 b/d is anticipated, the agency says, following last year's 120,000 b/d decline, with a minor rebound of only 10,000 b/d expected in 2024.
Thus, as per the IEA's forecast, the average oil demand in the region for 2023 is projected to reach 7.4 mb/d, only 20,000 b/d lower year-on-year, with a marginal increase of 10,000 b/d expected in 2024.