OPEC Cuts Oil Demand Forecast for 5th Straight Month

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PEC, whose members pump more than a third of the world's oil, lowered its forecast for growth in world oil demand for a fifth consecutive month, citing lower predicted demand in the United States and China, Bloomberg reported.

Consumption this year will grow by 1.42 million barrels a day, or 1.7%, to 83.5 million a day, OPEC said Thursday in its monthly report. The forecast is down 160,000 barrels a day from its last estimate, in August.

Next year, demand will grow by 1.52 million barrels a day, 100,000 barrels less than previously forecast, OPEC predicted.

The revisions “are driven by factors such as high oil prices, higher domestic product prices in several developing nations as well as changes in policy being implemented in several Asian nations,”' the report said. “It's yet too early to attempt to assess the impact of Hurricane Katrina on oil demand.”

The cartel is scheduled to meet Monday in Vienna, Austria, where it is headquartered.

OPEC said Saudi Arabia, the group's largest producer, is ready to raise its output to 11 million barrels a day as needed. Saudi Arabia last month pumped 9.58 million barrels a day, Bloomberg said.