Russia Expects Strong Recovery for Oil Demand

Russia is expecting a strong recovery in the global demand for oil, according to the Russian Minister of Energy, Alexander Novak, Reuters reported.

The minister said on Thursday that a significant rise in August could see demand improve to 10% below the pre-COVID-19 levels.

Demand was nearing 100 million barrels per day (bpd) before the pandemic, it then dropped to 25% below pre-COVID-19 levels in April, according to the Novak.

The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and other major producers, an alliance known as OPEC+, decided to raise output by 2 million bpd to 7.7 million bpd below the pre-crisis levels.