Global oil supply increased month-on-month (m-o-m) by 620,000 barrels per day (bpd) in March 2020 to average 99.86 million bpd, the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) said in its report on Thursday.
In March, OPEC crude oil production increased by 821 thousand bpd m-o-m to average 28.61 million bpd, according to secondary sources.
Non-OPEC liquids production in March, including OPEC natural gas liquids and non-conventional liquids, is estimated to have fallen by 0.20 million bpd m-o-m to average 71.25 million b/d.
As a result, the share of OPEC crude oil out of total global production increased by 0.6% to 28.7%.
According to the report, demand for OPEC crude in 2020 is forecast at 24.5 million bpd, and around 5.4 million bpd lower than in 2019.
The report explained that crude oil prices collapsed in March 2020, recording their deepest monthly drop since the global financial crisis in 2008 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
'The ramifications of the COVID-19 pandemic were the main driving force, resulting in unprecedented worldwide oil demand shock and massive sell-offs in the global oil markets, amid a significant crude surplus,' the report stated.
The report also said the contraction in the second quarter of this year is expected to be around 12 million bpd, with April due to witness the worst contraction of about 20 million bpd.
'The impact of the COVID-19 outbreak in China in the first quarter of 2020, and its negative impact on transportation and industrial fuels in the country, has since spread globally and is now affecting oil demand growth in most other countries and regions, with an unprecedented impact on global oil demand, and in transportation fuels in particular,' OPEC underlined.
By Gulsen Cagatay
Anadolu Agency
energy@aa.com.tr