09/23/2009
Asian
economies slumped steeply when exports plunged, but most of the
region already is recovering, the Asian Development Bank said in a
report released Sept. 22. The Asian Development Bank said that it now
sees growth in China, the world's second largest energy consumer, at
8.2 percent this year, which is 1.2 percentage points above its
previous outlook. As for next year, the group sees China growth at
8.9 percent.
The
Asian Development Bank also raised its 2009 India growth outlook from
5 percent previously to 6 percent. It also boosted its forecast for
2009 growth in developing Asian countries from 3.4 percent to its
current forecast of 3.9 percent.
Meanwhile,
the Department of Energy's Energy Information Administration (EIA)
recently estimated that world oil consumption would grow in the
fourth quarter of 2009 compared with year-earlier levels—marking
the first such growth in five quarters. The EIA projected that world
oil consumption would grow by 900,000 barrels per day in 2010, with
relatively strong growth in non-OECD countries being partially offset
by a slight decline in OECD consumption.
For
China, the EIA projects that liquid fuels consumption will increase
from an average of 8.08 million barrels per day (bpd) in 2009 to 8.37
million bpd in 2010—a year-over-year increase of 3.5 percent. For
India, liquid fuels consumption is forecast to rise from 3.03 million
bpd in 2009 to 3.18 million bpd in 2010—a 5 percent year-over-year
increase.
This
expected upturn in China's and India's economies and their oil demand
growth is seen as reinforcing the increasing demand for clean,
efficient alternatives to traditional fossil based liquid fuels
such as gasoline and diesel fuel.
This
expected upturn in China's and India's economies and their oil demand
growth is seen as putting increased pressure on world oil
supplies. Clean, efficient biofuels and other alternative energy
sources will augment traditional liquid fuel supplies to meet this
growing world demand for energy.