Opec rigidity will bleed oil markets – IEA

Paris – Oil markets risked tightening later this year if Opec was inflexible over supply, the International Energy Agency (IEA) said yesterday as it sharply raised its estimate for world oil demand.

The IEA pointed to unexpectedly strong demand in big emerging economies, a sharp supply fall last month and another crimping of supply this month because of routine maintenance on infrastructure outside the Opec zone.


The agency, which advises industrialised economies on energy policy, raised its forecast for daily demand growth to 1.7 million barrels a day, or 420 000 barrels more than it estimated a month ago.

“It seems difficult to escape the conclusion that the oil market will be tight in the second half,” the agency said in its monthly oil market report, in which it lifted its forecast for global oil demand to 86.1 million barrels a day.

The growth will affect oil prices globally, and fuel costs locally.

AFP