The Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) maintains its expectations for a rise in global demand for oil this year, considering it “strong” in light of the economic recovery and despite the risks associated with the Covid-19 epidemic.
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OPEC maintains its expectations of continued “strong” demand for oil in 2022
The Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) said Tuesday in its monthly report that its demand forecast for 2022 was maintained, with an expected rise of 4.2 million barrels per day to reach 100.8 million barrels.
“Although the impact of the omicron is expected to be mild and short-lived, there are still doubts regarding new mutations or new restrictions on mobility, and the global economic recovery is steady,” she added.
And OPEC reiterated its optimism, as it concluded in an article devoted to monetary policies to expect “strong” demand and estimated that “the oil market should remain well supported throughout 2022.”
This expectation comforts the OPEC countries and their partners in the OPEC Plus alliance, who decided once more in early January to increase their production for the seventh consecutive month in order to meet the demand for oil.
Between November and December, OPEC countries increased their production by 166,000 barrels per day, bringing the total to 27,882 million barrels per day, according to secondary (indirect) sources mentioned in the report.
Angola and Saudi Arabia, in particular, increased production, which compensated for the decline in Libya’s production.
However, these increases in production seem marginal to market needs, which is currently reflected in the rise in the price of a barrel.
Therefore, the prices of Brent and West Texas Intermediate crude oil on Tuesday reached their highest level in more than seven years, supported by supply disruptions, strong geopolitical tensions and rising demand.
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