World's oil market expected to shift

NEW YORK, Dec. 9 (UPI) -- Experts predict many key oil suppliers, such as Mexico, may require imports to offset rising internal energy demands, further straining global oil markets.

Experts say the expanding economies of oil-exporting countries are increasing at a rate that may curtail exports, forcing them to import oil within a decade, The New York Times reported Sunday.

Imports rose in Indonesia and analyst projections forecast Mexico, the No. 2 oil supplier for the United States, may need to start importing oil within five years.

"It is a very serious threat that a lot of major exporters that we count on today for international oil supply are no longer going to be net exporters any more in five to 10 years," said one oil analyst.

Experts predict the impact will cause a market shift, focusing the supply potential on sources like Canadian tar sands, the Times said.

Geopolitical stability in Iraq, Iran and Venezuela could offset the losses as well, experts said.

"Ten years from now, world capacity to produce oil could be 20 percent higher than today," Daniel Yergin, chairman of Cambridge Energy Research Associates, said in the Times. "But a lot will depend on how the geopolitics work out."