Members of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) have committed that the ‘relative stability’ in the oil market is sustained beyond 2020, said OPEC Secretary General Mohammad Sanusi Barkindo.

“I have been hearing resounding calls of all the players that they are determined not to allow a relapse to the downturn that we just navigated out of. Meaning they will do whatever is possible within their powers to ensure that this relative stability is sustained beyond 2020,” Barkindo said while speaking at the third India Energy Forum by CERAWeek.

“All the leading producers are committed to this. They have repeated this continuously and just yesterday the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the Russian Federation in Riyadh reiterated their commitment to this stability in market,” Barkindo said.

Commenting on the prevailing market conditions, Barkindo said, “What we believe is currently driving the market it has more to do with the demand side of the equation and not the supply. Supply is well constrained, both in OPEC and non-OPEC groups.”

“We have also been seeing deceleration in growth in North America, especially in the shale basins of the United States. But looking at the demand side, the continuous reports on the global economy from the industry and media reports continue to cast a long shadow on the global economy largely due to the trade disputes between the United States and China,” he added.

“As a result of that the financial markets that have come to play an increasing role in the evolution of prices is seen to take a bearish view of the continuous growth of the economy, and by extension, demand. Therefore, you can see we have become more cautious in our projections of demand for both 2019 and 2020,” he said.

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