Retail Review: 1Q saw higher profits despite escalating demand destruction

摘要

To say the first quarter of 2020 brought unprecedentedchallenges to the downstream petroleum industry might be a bit ofan understatement.Global demand was a concern early in the year as coronavirus disease2019 (COVID-19) started to have an impact in Asia. Lost demand certainlygot the attention of OPEC and non-OPEC producers that fall under theOPEC+ agreement. However, an impasse of producers at an early Marchmeeting led to the all-out price war between Saudi Arabia and Russia,forming half of the double whammy markets are facing today.