OPEC said a recovery in oil demand will be focused on the second half of the year as the impact of the pandemic lingers as a headwind for the group and its allies in supporting the market

OPEC oil output fell in February as a voluntary cut by Saudi Arabia added to agreed reductions under a pact with allies ending a run of seven consecutive monthly increases

Demand will rise by 5.79 million barrels per day (bpd) this year to 96.05 million bpd, the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries said in a monthly report

The commodity climbed 1.26 percent to $60.19 a barrel — its highest since January last year — as asset markets rallied on the back of vaccine rollouts and slowing virus infections

OPEC’s secretary general said he was cautiously optimistic the oil market would recover this year from the slump in demand brought on by the coronavirus pandemic

Oil demand recovery will take a hit from a spike in new coronavirus cases before vaccine roll-outs and stimulus measures help in the second half of the year, International Energy Agency (IEA) said

U.S. crude oil production is expected to fall by 190,000 barrels per day (bpd) in 2021 to 11.1 million bpd, the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) said, a smaller decline than its previous forecast for a drop of 240,000 bpd

Russia expects to support an increase in oil production by the group, known as OPEC+, of another 500,000 barrels per day from February at next month’s summit of the leading global oil producers

The roll-out of vaccines this month to combat the coronavirus pandemic will not quickly reverse the destruction wrought on global oil demand, International Energy Agency (IEA) warned

The Paris-based watchdog revised down its estimates for oil demand this year by 50,000 barrels per day (bpd) and for next year by 170,000 bpd, citing scarce jet fuel use as fewer people travel by air