On Wednesday, OPEC slashed its 2024 oil demand growth prediction down for the fifth consecutive month, with the cut being the largest.
Earlier this month, the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and its allies (OPEC+) delayed its plan to begin ramping up production output until April 2025 amid declining prices.
According to the latest monthly report, the organization anticipates a 1.61 million barrels per day (bpd) increase in global oil demand for 2024, a slight decrease from the previous month’s forecast of 1.82 million bpd.
OPEC has also revised down its growth projection for 2025 to 1.45 million bpd, lower than the earlier estimate of 1.54 million bpd.
The adjustment of 210,000 bpd in the 2024 projection marks the most significant reduction among the five cuts made by OPEC in its monthly reports since August. In July, OPEC had initially projected a 2.25 million bpd rise in global demand.
A key factor influencing the revision was the declining demand from China, the top global importer of crude oil. OPEC now predicts a much lower surge in oil demand from the world’s second-largest economy, with an increase of only 430,000 bpd in 2024, a significant decrease from the previous forecast of 760,000 bpd in July.
China’s crude oil imports are poised to reach a peak next year, reflecting a decline in demand for transportation fuel in the leading crude buyer worldwide.
Following the release of the OPEC report, oil prices trimmed their gains, causing Brent crude to trade under $73 per barrel.
