OPEC says oil demand in 2020 down by almost 10M barrels per day

Nov. 11 (UPI) -- OPEC on Wednesday revised down its global oil forecast for 2020, saying demand is off by almost 10 million barrels a day after a third quarter heavily impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic.

The monthly report by the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries, a key indicator of the health of the global oil industry, said it expects demand to "remain adversely affected" through the final three months of 2020.

"Transportation and industrial fuel are expected to remain adversely affected throughout [fourth quarter]," the report states.

As a result, world oil demand is now expected to contract by around 9.8 million barrels per day in 2020, compared to last year. That estimate is off by 300,000 barrels per day compared to OPEC's last assessment a month ago.

The report was a little more optimistic about 2021, projecting that oil demand will grow by 6.2 million barrels per day, which is also off 300,000 barrels from last month's forecast.

"These downward revisions mainly take into account downward adjustments to the economic outlook in [relevant] economies due to COVID-19 containment measures, with the accompanying adverse impacts on transportation and industrial fuel demand through mid-2021," the report added.

OPEC member Saudi Arabia, has indicated that it and others may adjust plans to restore supply when the organization meets later this month.

OPEC said it expects COVID-19 measures to continue even if a vaccine is approved and distributed worldwide.

Wednesday's report also said OPEC's global economic growth forecast continues to show a contraction of 4.3% for 2020 and slightly revised down the estimate for 2021, from 4.5% to 4.4%.