Saudi Arabia’s Al-Naimi Sees Demand Holding Strong in Asia

Saudi Arabian Oil Minister Ali al- Naimi said demand for crude will hold strong from Asian buyers as the U.S. produces more of its own fuel.

“The expectations of energy demand and growth are still positive,” al-Naimi said today in a speech in Doha, Qatar, carried by official Saudi Press Agency. “I was in Hong Kong recently and I felt optimism towards the future growth of the region.”
Saudi Arabia, the biggest producer in the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries, kept output unchanged in March from February at 9 million barrels a day, according to a Bloomberg survey. Demand for OPEC crude was estimated to average 29.7 million barrels a day in 2013, OPEC said in a monthly report on March 12. That’s a drop of 400,000 barrels a day from last year and down 100,000 barrels a day from February’s report, it said. OPEC supplies about 40 percent of the world’s crude.

Read more: http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2013-04-01/saudi-arabia-s-al-naimi-sees-demand-holding-strong-in-asia.html