Business

Davos: Aramco CEO says oil glut predictions are exaggerated

Oil prices ‌have traded above $60 per barrel for most of 2025 with analysts predicting a decline in ⁠2026.

Global ‍oil glut predictions are seriously exaggerated as demand ​growth remains strong and global oil stocks are depleted, Amin ⁠Nasser, chief executive of Aramco, the world’s biggest oil producer, said on ⁠Thursday.

Oil prices ‌have traded above $60 per barrel for most of 2025 with analysts predicting a decline in ⁠2026 as they expect global supply to exceed demand by a big margin due to production growth from the United States, OPEC+ and other producers.

Demand growth ⁠remains strong in emerging ​economies followed by China and the United States with total demand reaching ‍record levels last year and rising again this year, Nasser told reporters ​on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum in Davos.

“Oil glut predictions are seriously exaggerated… Oil stocks are low across the world on a five-year average and barrels offshore are mostly sanctioned barrels,” he said.

The world is also short of spare oil capacity or unused oil production that countries can activate in case of an emergency to ⁠avert price spikes.

“It (spare capacity) is ‌at 2.5% and we need a minimum of 3%. If OPEC+ further unwinds cuts, spare capacity will ‌fall even further ⁠and we will need to watch this very carefully,” ⁠said Nasser.

© ZAWYA

GLOBAL BUSINESS AND FINANCE MAGAZINE

Recent Posts

Global economic outlook hangs in balance between geopolitical headwinds and AI boost, WEF Chief Economists’ Outlook warns

Nearly nine in ten chief economists surveyed expect global growth to weaken over the next…

3 days ago

Availability, accessibility, affordability of quality food are vital for food security, says FAO

The Director-General emphasised that the “Four Levels of Food” provide a crucial roadmap for enhancing…

3 days ago

Global economic outlook hangs in balance between geopolitical headwinds and AI boost, WEF Chief Economists’ Outlook warns

Chief economists already rank the current closure duration of the Strait of Hormuz as significantly…

3 days ago

South Asia opens up: How trade reforms impact households and sectors

Over the next decade, about 280 million people will come of working age in South Asia.…

3 days ago

Can we even measure progress? The state of development data

Imagine you’ve just been appointed Minister of Finance. Tomorrow morning, you must decide where to…

3 days ago

Frontier market economies: Seven insights on global financial integration and rising debt

Over the next quarter-century, today's frontier markets are projected to add more individuals to the…

3 days ago