MOSCOW, February 1. /TASS/. The global oil demand will grow at a healthy pace and will be above the pre-COVID pandemic level as early as in the second half of 2022, the Joint Technical Committee (JTC) of OPEC+ said in its report seen by TASS.
It is noted "that world oil demand will surpass pre COVID-19 levels in 2nd half 2022 with a healthy recovery trend," the document says. Experts keep the forecast of oil demand growth by 4.2 mln barrels daily in 2022 to 100.8 mln barrels per day.
At the same time, the Committee cautioned "against significant uncertainties associated with the potential impact of the Omicron variant," according to the document. Risks for the economic recovery also comprise ongoing supply chain bottlenecks, recent central bank policy shifts to accommodate upside inflation, volatility in commodity markets, growing capacity strains from underinvestment in the oil industry, the challenge of high sovereign debt levels in many regions and geopolitical risks, experts said.