Demand reached an all-time high of 103mn barrels a day in June driven by better than expected economic growth in OECD countries, strong summer air travel and surging oil consumption in China, particularly for petrochemical production, the IEA said in its monthly oil report.
The data shows that global efforts to cut carbon emissions are yet to completely halt the rise in on oil demand, even as record temperatures and wildfires, simultaneously with severe flooding, has hit the globe.
The IEA said demand could hit another peak this month and was on track to average 102.2mn b/d in 2023, the highest ever annual level. It means demand will have risen by 2.2mn b/d over the course of the year, with 70% of the growth coming from China, the IEA said.
Oil demand was expected to rise again in 2024 but at slower rate, the IEA cautioned, as it trimmed its demand growth forecast for 2024 by 150,000 b/d.