MORE OIL, SLOWER DEMAND MEAN WORLD CAN WEATHER RUSSIAN LOSSES, SAYS THE IEA

LOWER output from Russia due to the fallout from its invasion of Ukraine will not leave the world short of oil, the International Energy Agency (IEA) said yesterday, as supply ramps up elsewhere and Chinese lockdowns tamp down demand. “Over time, steadily rising volumes from Middle East Opec+ and the US, along with a slowdown in demand growth is expected to fend off an acute supply deficit amid a worsening Russian supply disruption,” the IEA said in its monthly oil report. Slower products exports and falling domestic demand following sanctions means around a million barrels per day (bpd) of Russian oil was shut in last month – about half a million barrels per day (bpd) less than the Paris-based agency forecast last month. The IEA sees that figure rising to 1.6 million bpd in May, then 2 million in June and nearly 3 million from July onwards if sanctions deter further buying or expand. Still, Russian exports rebounded in April by 620 000 bpd from the month before to 8.1 million bpd, the IEA said, back to their JanuaryFebruary average, as Russian supply is rerouted away from the US and Europe, primarily to India. | Reuters