IEA sees more oil use in 2010
World demand outlook is 1.7% up on 2009
Tom Stundza -- Purchasing, 11/18/2009 3:18:10 PM
The International Energy Agency this month raised its forecast
for global oil demand in both 2009 and 2010 due to optimistic demand expectations
in China and over developing
economies in Asia and the Middle East.
According to the agency, global demand for 2009 now is seen averaging 84.8 million barrels/day. That's higher than the IEA's previous forecast, but still down 1.5 million barrels/day from the revised 2008 daily-use estimate of 86.3 million barrels/day. The IEA in May had reduced the 2009 demand estimate to 83.2 million barrels/day but that has been revised upward because of "stronger-than-expected preliminary data in North America and buoyant demand in Asia outside China and the Middle East."
Looking ahead, IEA projects that demand in 2010 could increase by as much as 1.4 million barrels/day to 86.2 million since "the worst of the global recession has passed in China and India," says Nobuo Tanaka, the agency's executive director, in an interview with ICISnews.com. China is the world's second-largest user of crude oil and petroleum products.
In the published IEA forecast, the agency expects "upward" economic activity to boost the need for oil-based energy in 2010 in North America and the Pacific, which will offset continued downward demand in Europe.
However, the report also cautions that "the demand picture remains uncertain, notably in the U.S." since the rate of economic recovery remains "more difficult to anticipate." The report also says that diesel demand, which is strongly correlated to economic activity, continues to languish in 2009 and the anticipated rate of growth in 2010 remains unclear.
"It would thus seem that the ‘real' U.S. economy, as opposed to the financial one, is struggling to recover, despite the end of the recession," the IEA says.
World may need more OPEC crude
03/13/2007IEA Cuts World Oil Outlook
03/12/2009What's Happening in High-Tech Supply Chains
02/02/2005
Now Playing: 
