Global oil flows are changing. For several years now, Mideast oil producers have been adjusting to new market realities and shipping more crude to Asia. But this trend has been accelerated by the 2008-09 recession, which hurt oil consumption much less in Asia's two main economic growth engines of China and India than it did in the more mature markets of Europe and North America. Since 2005, Chinese oil demand has increased by 1.6 million barrels per day, while US demand has dropped by 2 million b/d. Shipments of Mideast crude to the US averaged 2.34 million b/d in 2008, and accounted for 23.9% of overall crude imports. But in the first 11 months of 2009, Mideast shipments averaged only 1.69 million b/d - a 28% year-on-year drop, and accounting for only 18.6% of total imports.
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