OPEC Sees Oil Demand Climbing Through 2050 — Thanks In Part To Trump’s Paris Climate Accord Exit

Oil producer group OPEC made a bold prediction on Thursday that global oil prices will continue to rise till 2050, contrary to the view of many independent groups.

The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) announced on Thursday that oil demand is expected to rise by approximately 19% to reach around 123 million barrels per day (bpd) by 2050. This represents about 3 million bpd more than the group predicted last year.

According to OPEC, the U.S. President Donald Trump's decision to withdraw from the Paris climate accords and India's economic growth are expected to drive oil demand.

However, the group lowered its projections for oil demand over the next four years. OPEC predicted that demand will average 106.3 million barrels per day (bpd) in 2026, compared with 108 million bpd last year. The 2029 forecast was reduced by 700,000 bpd, from 111.6 million bpd in last year’s forecast.

Retail sentiment on Stocktwits about the United States Oil Fund (USO) was in the ‘extremely bearish’ (22/100) territory.

The group's bullish demand prediction stood in sharp contrast to that of many forecasters, including BP Plc, Bank of America, the International Energy Agency, and Wood Mackenzie. These entities believe demand growth will cease within the next decade, primarily due to signs of peaking in top consumer China.

On Friday, Benchmark Brent crude prices rose 0.3%, to $68.87 a barrel while U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude was up by 0.3%, to $66.79 a barrel, as investors explored the possibility of a weaker market outlook for this year by the International Energy Agency (IEA) and possible sanctions on Russia.

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