The OPEC oil cartel has lowered its projections for growth of oil demand this year in response to a slowdown in world economic momentum.
The Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries, in its February report, said demand was likely grow by 1.43% this year rather than its previously estimated 1.52%.
The cartel said average daily demand growth would come to 1.23 million barrels, taking demand to 86.99 million barrels a day. In January OPEC put the overall figure at 87.07 million barrels.
'Risks to the world economy have increased considerably in January on mounting evidence of a slowdown in the US economy, fuelling fears of an outright recession with uncertain repercussions for the rest of the world,' the report said.
The increase in oil consumption in 2008 is projected to approach that of 2007, when it came to 1.2 million barrels a day, or a rise of 1.4%, according to an earlier OPEC estimate that it kept unchanged in the February report.
