International Energy with delta strain of Covid-19

The International Energy Agency said on Thursday that rising oil demand had abruptly reversed and is set to proceed at a slower pace for the rest of the year, due to the spread of the mutated delta strain of Covid-19.

On the other hand, the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) stuck to its expectations on Thursday for a strong recovery in global oil demand in 2021 and more growth next year, despite concerns about the spread of the mutated Delta strain of the Corona virus, which is pressing on prices.

And it said in its monthly report that it expects demand to rise by 5.95 million barrels per day this year, or 6.6 percent, unchanged from its forecast last month.

"The global economy continues to recover...but there are still many challenges that could easily dampen the momentum," she added. In particular, developments related to COVID-19 will need to be closely monitored.”

And OPEC said that next year, fuel use will increase by 3.28 million barrels per day, also unchanged from expectations issued last month.

The International Finance Corporation, the investment arm of the World Bank, announced the provision of a financing package of $75 million to the "Hael Saeed Anam" group, one of the largest investment groups in the food sector in Yemen.

The foundation said, in a statement posted on its website, that it "has provided up to $75 million, from its own account and from others, to the operations of the Hayel Saeed Anam Group in Yemen."

"This financing for the group comes in order to increase its production and distribution of basic commodities, such as flour and dairy products," it said in the statement.

"This partnership comes in the midst of a humanitarian crisis ravaging Yemen, in which the population is facing the threat of starvation," he added.

The "Hail Saeed Anam" group includes six food companies operating in the dairy, flour and sugar sectors.

The group will use this financing in the working capital of its companies, according to a statement by the international corporation.

"This is the first investment by the International Corporation in the agro-industrial sector in Yemen in more than 10 years," the statement said.

He added, "The financing package provided by the Foundation will work to alleviate food shortages and ensure the sustainability of supply chains, including the supply of basic food commodities to cities and villages across Yemen."

For nearly 7 years, Yemen has been witnessing a war launched by Saudi Arabia, which has claimed 233,000 lives and forced 80 percent of the population, numbering about 30 million, to rely on aid to survive, in the worst humanitarian crisis in the world, according to the United Nations.

OPEC sticks to its optimistic forecasts

And it raised its forecast for global economic growth in 2021 to 5.6 percent, from 5.5 percent, assuming that the impact of the pandemic would be contained, but she warned of “great uncertainty.” The forecast for 2022 was similarly raised to 4.2 percent.

"The course of the COVID-19 pandemic will be the main factor influencing the pace of recovery in the near term, with the risk in particular being the possibility of the emergence of new strains and/or mutations of COVID-19," the organization said.

The organization and its allies, within the framework of the “OPEC +” group, are gradually easing record oil production cuts that began last year, when the pandemic ravaged demand. In July, they agreed to gradually increase production by 400,000 barrels per day, starting from the beginning of this month.

The OPEC report showed an increase in production in July by 640,000 barrels per day to 26.66 million barrels per day, with Saudi Arabia retracting the rest of its voluntary supply cuts that it had made to support the market.

For its part, the International Energy Agency said in a statement issued by its headquarters in Paris, “Growth in the second half of 2021 was reduced at a sharp pace, as it appears that the new restrictions to combat Covid-19 imposed in several large oil consuming countries, especially in Asia, will be reduced. Transportation and the use of oil.

"We now estimate that demand fell in July as the rapid spread of the delta mutated strain of COVID-19 disrupted deliveries in China, Indonesia and other parts of Asia," it added in its monthly oil market report.

The agency set a drop in demand last month at 120,000 barrels per day, and expected growth in the second half of the year to be half a million barrels per day less, compared to its estimate issued last month, noting that some of the changes are due to revisions to data.

The agency added that the production agreement reached by the “OPEC +” group last month will restore balance to the market in the short term.

And she added that the market may "tend again to record a surplus in 2022 if OPEC continues to halt the cuts and the producers who did not participate in the agreement (production) boost (production) in response to the rise in prices."

Yesterday, the United States called on the group to boost oil production to counter rising gasoline prices and support the global economic recovery.

OPEC + is scheduled to hold a meeting on the first of September to review the situation.

Citing a United Nations report this week warning that climate change is spiraling out of control, the IEA said the world needed to urgently move towards a carbon-neutral world.

"The global oil industry is struggling to find new business models that are able to coexist with shifts in the energy sector... while continuing to meet sustainable demand for oil," she added