OPEC crude oil production fell 836,000 barrels a day in July, an expected drop as Saudi Arabia imposed drastic cuts to support prices, according to the latest monthly report from the organization of oil-producing countries. In July, the oil production of the thirteen member countries of OPEC, which has Saudi Arabia as a heavyweight, “decreased by 836,000 barrels in one month to reach an average of 27.31 million barrels per day,” says the report. citing indirect sources.
This fall is mainly due to Saudi Arabia, whose drop in production in July is estimated at 968,000 barrels per day, a massive drop that was only slightly offset by production increases in certain countries such as Angola and Iraq. Nine members of the OPEC+ alliance (made up of 13 member countries and 9 allied states), including Riyadh and Moscow, have introduced voluntary production cuts since May totaling 1.6 million barrels/day (mb/d), a measure to support courses at a high level.
Saudi Arabia, for its part, opted for a new production cut of one million barrels/day for July, which was extended twice until August and then until September. Moscow, for its part, has promised to reduce its exports by 500,000 barrels/day in August and then by 300,000 barrels/day in September.
Expected increase in demand
For 2023, OPEC maintains its global demand growth forecast with an increase of 2.4 million barrels per day, to reach an average of 102 mb/d, (compared to 99.57 mb/d in 2022), according to an assessment by OPEC, which revises its forecasts every month.
In the third quarter, global oil demand is expected to reach 101.96 mb/d and 103.21 mb/d in the fourth quarter. “A continued increase in demand for transport and industrial fuel, supported by a recovery in activity in China and other non-OECD regions, is expected to boost demand in 2023,” the OPEC report said in its report. . By 2024, the organization also forecasts “that strong global economic growth, accompanied by continued improvement in China, should stimulate oil consumption.”
OPEC forecasts an increase in demand of 2.2 mb/d, which would bring global demand for black gold to an average of 104.3 mb/d.
Source: BFM TV
