Measure for measure

摘要

Oil markets are tumbling again. Global crude markers have fallen by at least $7.50/bl since late July. The release of weak US economic data and eurozone sovereign debt issues have amplified concerns that oil demand growth will slow down or contract. Prices tell a story about the interaction of supply and demand at the margin. But measuring the demand side of the equation is an elusive business. It is complicated at a country level by shifting trade patterns, and on a global scale by a lack of transparency from the non-OECD countries that are the source of most demand growth.