Nigeria’s export receipt from oil revenue, which slumped by 98 per cent from March to April, is set for a rebound as the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) has forecast demand to exceed 99 million barrels per day(bpd) in the fourth quarter of 2021.
OPEC Secretary General, Mohammed Sanusi Barkindo, announced the cherry news at 135th meeting of the Economic Commission Board (closed session) held via videoconference.
The April revenue from oil exports stood at $1.764 million (N723 million), according to the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), as against $87.14 million (N35.72 billion) for March.
NNPC had reported that exports of crude in March totaled 66.67 million barrels, out of 7.62 billion barrels lifted during the month, adding that it had stuck to its OPEC+ production quota of 1.52 million bpd during the reporting period.
Barkindo added that the forecast for world oil demand has decreased from 6.2 million bpd in November 2020 to six million bpd in June 2021.
‘‘The outlook for later this year looks especially promising with demand slated to exceed 99 million bpd in the fourth quarter. This prospect would bring us back close to pre-pandemic levels.
Demand growth in non-Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development(OECD) countries this year is expected to reach 6.8 per cent or 3.3 million bpd, while OECD countries will see growth of approximately 6.4 per cent or 2.7 million bpd.
These are all encouraging signs that the worst of the pandemic is hopefully behind us. However, we have learned through experience not to jump to conclusion too quickly.
There are still lingering uncertainties that we must take into consideration. The COVID-19 mutations continue to challenge some countries who are struggling to recover from this long and drawn-out crisis.’’
