12/03/2026 09:14 AST
The Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) has maintained, for the seventh consecutive month, its 2026-2027 global oil demand growth projections unchanged.
OPEC kept its forecast for global oil demand growth at 1.38 million bpd for 2026 and at 1.3 million bpd for 2027.
The Iran war has severely impacted global supply chains, as the Gulf region is crucial to the world's oil and gas supply.
The war sent oil prices surging close to $120 a barrel on Monday before they later eased to around the low $90s, as markets weighed the risk of wider disruption against hopes the conflict might still be contained.
OPEC's report focused on February market conditions prior to the Feb. 28 conflict outbreak, therefore, not reflecting the war's impact on the volume or price of oil.
"Ongoing geopolitical developments warrant close monitoring, although their impact, if any, on the growth forecast may be too early to determine," OPEC said ?in the report, referring to economic growth.
OPEC also ?said output by the wider OPEC+, which includes the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries plus other producers such as Russia, averaged 42.72 million bpd in February, up 445,000 bpd from January, citing secondary sources.
Crude oil production by OPEC rose by 164,000 bpd in February compared to January 2026, reaching around 28.63 million bpd, according to the group's latest Monthly Oil Market Report.
The largest output increase came from Venezuela, while Nigeria recorded the biggest decline last month.
And for the second month, OPEC kept its forecast for the growth of oil supply of non-OPEC countries at 630,000 bpd in 2026, and at 610,000 bpd in 2027.
Early this month, the eight OPEC+ countries agreed to a modest oil output boost of 206,000 bpd for April, a decision framed as a response to steady market fundamentals and global economic growth.
The eight members had raised production quotas by about 2.9 million bpd from April through December 2025, roughly 3% of global demand, before pausing increases for January to March 2026 due to seasonal weakness.
Asharq Al Awsat
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