Slow growth in refined products demand and higher ME refinery runs to curb trade growth

摘要

The growth of crude oil in global seaborne trade is expected to slow down further in 2018 after registering sluggish growth in 2017. The expected rise in pipeline trade, inventory drawdown and the anticipated growth in refinery runs in the Middle East will curb growth in crude seaborne trade. We expect seaborne trade in crude oil to increase by 1.2% to 2,126 million tonnes in 2018. However, the expected rise in long-haul crude exports from the US will lead to a 2.3% growth in tonne-mile demand.