OPEC has decided to cease publishing a calculation of the world’s demand for its own crude in its monthly oil report, according to two insider sources who spoke to Reuters. Instead, the organization will now concentrate on forecasting the demand for oil from the broader OPEC+ group.
This change underscores the ongoing collaboration between the members of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and the wider OPEC+ coalition in making collective oil supply decisions.
In its monthly reports, OPEC’s Vienna secretariat typically included an estimate of the demand for OPEC crude, known as the ‘call on OPEC’, which was closely monitored by analysts and traders as a key indicator of oil market strength.
Starting from this month, OPEC will only provide an estimate of the demand for crude from the Declaration of Cooperation (DoC) countries, as per the sources. The DoC, comprising the 12 OPEC members and 10 non-members led by Russia, is now considered the primary framework for cooperation in the oil market.
The sources highlighted that demand for crude from the broader group is now more pertinent, considering the evolving role of the DoC in oil market cooperation. Both sources chose to remain anonymous.
OPEC has yet to comment on these developments.
Following Angola’s departure at the end of last year, the market share of OPEC crude has dropped to a multi-decade low of 27%.
