Crude oil prices fell 0.72% to ₹5,264 on heightened demand concerns after OPEC revised its global crude demand growth forecast for 2025 and 2026 by 150,000 barrels per day (bpd). According to OPEC, demand is expected to increase by 1.30 million barrels per day in 2025 and 1.28 million barrels per day in 2026.
On the supply side, Russian and crude flows pushed China’s crude oil imports to 12.1 million barrels per day in March, a nearly 5% year-on-year increase and the highest level since August 2023. The IEA said the supply surplus of 600,000 bpd this year could increase to 1 million bpd if OPEC+ does not cut production, cutting its 2025 oil demand growth forecast by 70,000 bpd.
