Photo/Shetuwang

The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) cut its forecast of global oil demand for 2020, predicting a 9.8 million barrels per day (b/d) year-on-year contraction in its monthly report published on Wednesday.

The oil cartel revised down its forecast for world oil demand this year by 0.3 million b/d, citing "weaker-than-expected demand" in the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) Americas in the third quarter and recently announced COVID-19 containment measures by various governments in OECD Europe.

It expected global oil demand to grow by 6.2 million b/d in 2021, cutting the number down by 0.3 million b/d compared to last month's assessment, due to COVID-19 restrictions "with the accompanying adverse impacts on transportation and industrial fuel demand through mid-2021."

The U.S. economy is forecast to contract by 3.6 percent in 2020, while a larger decline is expected in the Eurozone, where economic activity is forecast to fall by 7.2 percent.

China's economy is forecast to grow by 2.0 percent in 2020 and 6.9 percent in 2021.

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