BAKU, Azerbaijan, Sept.10
By Leman Zeynalova – Trend:
Oil market balances will continue tightening for the remainder of 2020, Trend reports with reference to the US Energy Information Administration’s (EIA) in September Short-term Energy Outlook (STEO).
EIA estimates that global consumption of petroleum and liquid fuels averaged 94.3 million b/d in August. Liquid fuels consumption was down 8.2 million b/d from August 2019, but it was up from an average of 85.1 million b/d during the second quarter of 2020 and 93.3 million b/d in July.
EIA forecasts that consumption of petroleum and liquid fuels globally will average 93.1 million b/d for all of 2020, down 8.3 million b/d from 2019, before increasing by 6.5 million b/d in 2021.
EIA’s forecast for growth in 2021 is 0.5 million b/d less than in the August STEO. The downward revision is largely a result of lower expected consumption growth in China, which EIA now forecasts to grow by 1.0 million b/d in 2021.
EIA estimates that global liquid fuels production averaged 91.5 million b/d in August, down 9.7 million b/d year over year. The decline largely reflects voluntary production cuts by the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and partner countries (OPEC+), along with reductions in drilling activity and production curtailments in the United States because of low oil prices.
EIA expects global liquid fuels production will rise to an annual average of 99.3 million b/d in 2021.
EIA estimates that global oil consumption in August grew by 1.0 million barrels per day (b/d) from July, the slowest month-over-month increase since consumption began to recover in May and the first time during that period that consumption growth was surpassed by growth in world oil production.
Despite the different pace of increase between global oil production and consumption during August, EIA forecasts oil market balances to continue tightening for the remainder of 2020 as a result of continued demand recovery, restrained production from members of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and partner countries (OPEC+), and price-related declines in production from the United States.
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