Global oil production is set to outpace demand from December as the US and Opec+ countries increase supply, the International Energy Agency said on Tuesday.
"Much-needed relief for tight markets is on the way, with world oil supply set to overtake demand starting this month," the Paris-based agency said in its monthly report.
"The steady rise in supply, combined with easing demand, has considerably loosened our balances."
The Opec+ group, led by Saudi Arabia and Russia, has been gradually increasing supply by 400,000 barrels per day since August to meet rising demand as global economies reopen.
The US, Canada and Brazil are also set to pump at their highest annual levels, lifting overall non-Opec+ output by 1.8 million bpd in 2022, said the agency.
Global supply would soar to 6.4 million bpd next year, compared with a 1.5 million bpd rise in 2021, if Opec+ member countries fully unwind their remaining production cuts, it said.
In the near term, additional barrels could come from strategic petroleum reserves (SPRs) – an emergency stockpile kept by a country to preserve access to oil in case of natural disasters, national security issues and other events.
The US announced on November 23 that it would release up to 50 million barrels of oil from its SPR, with similar action taken by China, India, South Korea, Japan and the UK in an effort to ease energy prices.
Oil prices dropped sharply in November as the emergence of the Omicron coronavirus variant threatened a fledgling economic recovery. However, prices rose subsequently and remained steady as concerns about the new strain eased.
In the US, most cases of the Omicron variant, which was first detected in South Africa last month, have been mild, the US Centres for Disease Control said on Friday.
Booster shots are also effective against the new variant and could offer up to 75 per cent protection, according to another study by the UK Health Security Agency.
Brent, the international benchmark, was down 0.01 per cent at $74.38 a barrel at 3.21pm UAE time while West Texas Intermediate, the gauge that tracks US crude, was trading 0.03 per cent lower at $71.27 a barrel.
“The surge in new Covid-19 cases is expected to temporarily slow, but not upend, the recovery in oil demand that is under way,” it said.
New containment measures put in place to halt the spread of the virus are expected to have a more “muted impact on the economy” due to widespread vaccination campaigns, the agency said. Demand for road transport fuels and petrochemical feedstocks will continue to post healthy growth.
However, the agency has revised down its global oil demand forecast for 2021 and 2022 by 100,000 bpd on average, mainly due to reduced jet fuel use owing to renewed restrictions on international travel.
Total production of crude oil, natural gas liquids and refinery feedstocks in Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development countries rose 4.6 per cent annually in September, the agency said in a separate report.
On Monday, Opec raised its global oil demand forecast for the first quarter of 2022 but left its full-year growth projection as it said the Omicron coronavirus variant would have a mild impact. The group of crude exporters kept the world oil demand growth unchanged at 4.2 million bpd for 2022.
However, it raised its global oil demand forecast for the first quarter of next year by 1.11 million bpd to 9.13 million bpd as global economies continue to recover from the pandemic.
Infiniti QX80 specs
Engine: twin-turbocharged 3.5-liter V6
Power: 450hp
Torque: 700Nm
Price: From Dh450,000, Autograph model from Dh510,000
Available: Now
Overall standings
1. Christopher Froome (GBR/Sky) 68hr 18min 36sec,
2. Fabio Aru (ITA/AST) at 0:18.
3. Romain Bardet (FRA/ALM) 0:23.
4. Rigoberto Uran (COL/CAN) 0:29.
5. Mikel Landa (ESP/SKY) 1:17.
Sole survivors
- Cecelia Crocker was on board Northwest Airlines Flight 255 in 1987 when it crashed in Detroit, killing 154 people, including her parents and brother. The plane had hit a light pole on take off
- George Lamson Jr, from Minnesota, was on a Galaxy Airlines flight that crashed in Reno in 1985, killing 68 people. His entire seat was launched out of the plane
- Bahia Bakari, then 12, survived when a Yemenia Airways flight crashed near the Comoros in 2009, killing 152. She was found clinging to wreckage after floating in the ocean for 13 hours.
- Jim Polehinke was the co-pilot and sole survivor of a 2006 Comair flight that crashed in Lexington, Kentucky, killing 49.
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Fines for littering
In Dubai:
Dh200 for littering or spitting in the Dubai Metro
Dh500 for throwing cigarette butts or chewing gum on the floor, or littering from a vehicle.
Dh1,000 for littering on a beach, spitting in public places, throwing a cigarette butt from a vehicle
In Sharjah and other emirates
Dh500 for littering - including cigarette butts and chewing gum - in public places and beaches in Sharjah
Dh2,000 for littering in Sharjah deserts
Dh500 for littering from a vehicle in Ras Al Khaimah
Dh1,000 for littering from a car in Abu Dhabi
Dh1,000 to Dh100,000 for dumping waste in residential or public areas in Al Ain
Dh10,000 for littering at Ajman's beaches
Our legal consultant
Name: Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
Quick pearls of wisdom
Focus on gratitude: And do so deeply, he says. “Think of one to three things a day that you’re grateful for. It needs to be specific, too, don’t just say ‘air.’ Really think about it. If you’re grateful for, say, what your parents have done for you, that will motivate you to do more for the world.”
Know how to fight: Shetty married his wife, Radhi, three years ago (he met her in a meditation class before he went off and became a monk). He says they’ve had to learn to respect each other’s “fighting styles” – he’s a talk it-out-immediately person, while she needs space to think. “When you’re having an argument, remember, it’s not you against each other. It’s both of you against the problem. When you win, they lose. If you’re on a team you have to win together.”
if you go
The flights
Air Astana flies direct from Dubai to Almaty from Dh2,440 per person return, and to Astana (via Almaty) from Dh2,930 return, both including taxes.
The hotels
Rooms at the Ritz-Carlton Almaty cost from Dh1,944 per night including taxes; and in Astana the new Ritz-Carlton Astana (www.marriott) costs from Dh1,325; alternatively, the new St Regis Astana costs from Dh1,458 per night including taxes.
When to visit
March-May and September-November
Visas
Citizens of many countries, including the UAE do not need a visa to enter Kazakhstan for up to 30 days. Contact the nearest Kazakhstan embassy or consulate.
Takreem Awards winners 2021
Corporate Leadership: Carl Bistany (Lebanon)
Cultural Excellence: Hoor Al Qasimi (UAE)
Environmental Development and Sustainability: Bkerzay (Lebanon)
Environmental Development and Sustainability: Raya Ani (Iraq)
Humanitarian and Civic Services: Women’s Programs Association (Lebanon)
Humanitarian and Civic Services: Osamah Al Thini (Libya)
Excellence in Education: World Innovation Summit for Education (WISE) (Qatar)
Outstanding Arab Woman: Balghis Badri (Sudan)
Scientific and Technological Achievement: Mohamed Slim Alouini (KSA)
Young Entrepreneur: Omar Itani (Lebanon)
Lifetime Achievement: Suad Al Amiry (Palestine)
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