Baku, Azerbaijan, Dec.13
By Leman Zeynalova – Trend:
World oil demand in 2018 is projected to grow at a slower rate than during the previous year, albeit at healthy levels, Trend reports citing OPEC’s Monthly Oil Market Report (MOMR).
Oil demand growth for 2018 is estimated at 1.5 million barrels per day (mb/d), which was revised down by around 150,000 b/d from the forecast in July 2018, according to the cartel.
The company said that in OECD (Organization of Economic Co-operation and Development) Americas, growth is driven by the significant expansion of petrochemical plants in the US, as well as solid economic activities.
“In the non-OECD, Other Asia is projected to lead demand growth, sustained by robust oil product consumption in India, Indonesia, Singapore and Thailand. Conversely, demand in the Middle East has weakened in response to economic reforms including subsidy removals, substitution plans and energy efficiency-related polices,” the report reads.
OPEC said that for next year, global oil demand is forecast to increase by around 1.29 mb/d, some 160,000 b/d lower than the initial forecast in July 2018, to average 100.1 mb/d, thereby surpassing the historical 100 mb/d threshold on an annual basis.
In the OECD region, oil demand is projected to grow by 0.25 mb/d. Consumption in OECD Americas is expected to be firmly in the positive, driven by solid natural gas liquids (NGL) and middle distillate requirements, according to the cartel.
“In the non-OECD region, growth is anticipated to be around 1.04 mb/d, with slightly lower growth in China compared to this year. Other regions, such as Latin America and the Middle East, are expected to see higher growth y-o-y,” said the report.
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