OPEC demand outlook cut builds case to keep supply curbs

LONDON: OPEC has cut its forecast for global oil demand growth and warned of potential further cuts as international trade disputes continue to fester, building a case for prolonged supply restraint over the rest of 2019, Reuters reported on Thursday.

The oil producer group and its allies meet in the coming weeks to decide whether to maintain supply curbs, with some having become alarmed by a steep slide in prices, despite U.S. President Donald Trump pressing for action to lower prices.

World oil demand will rise by 1.14 million barrels per day (bpd) this year, 70,000 bpd less than previously expected, the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries said in a monthly report published on Thursday.

“Throughout the first half of this year, ongoing global trade tensions have escalated,” OPEC said in the report, adding that

the potential for these disputes to affect global demand poses “significant downside risks”.

OPEC, Russia and other producers have, since Jan. 1, implemented a deal to cut output by 1.2 million bpd. They meet over June 25-26 or in early July to decide whether to extend the pact.