VIENNA: There is a risk that oil demand in the United States remains flat or falls this year, the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) said Wednesday, citing uncertainty about economic recovery in the US.
As the world’s largest economy, the US plays a key role in oil markets, consuming nearly a quarter of global supplies.
The Vienna-based oil organization currently forecasts the country’s oil demand to grow by 1 percent in 2010, after declining by 0.8 million barrels per day (bpd) last year.
“It is expected that the recovery will strengthen in the second half of the year; however the risk is high that the country’s oil demand would slide back further,” the report said.
The main question is whether the government in Washington manages to stimulate the economy and fight unemployment, OPEC said, forecasting that gross domestic product would rise only 0.4 percent in real terms above the pre-crisis level this year.
Oil rose above $74 a barrel on Wednesday after the US Energy Information Administration raised its forecast for crude demand and prices this year, a sign it expected economic recovery to gain steam.
US crude futures rose 36 cents a barrel to $74.12 as of 1:10 p.m. EST (1810 GMT), after dipping as low as $72.60.
ICE Brent crude futures rose 9 cents to $72.21.
