China is currently the key to the global oil market. They are the largest importer, and their strategic oil reserve has been soaking up a good majority of the excess oil produced in the past few years. However they might soon be playing second fiddle to India.
India is ramping up hard to be a global industrial power, and that requires a whole lot of natural resources. And oil is one thing that they are short of domestically. They currently consume around four and a half million barrels per day, and have to import 75% of that. It seems like a lot, but for their population density, it is a remarkably small amount of petroleum. Something around half a liter per person every day. China on the other hand consumes around a liter and a half per person. And a good old America consumes almost 10. So it would be almost expected for India to double their oil imports in the next few years. There is a growing middle class in India, and the number of automobiles on the road is rapidly expanding. Any fears that China’s economy is contracting will be more than offset by the rise of India. The two countries will continue to combine for increased petroleum demand for the next few years.
India may be the savior that Iran is looking for as well. India is already spending large amounts of money on foreign oil projects, and are not concerned with any future US sanctions of Iran. Those two countries will almost certainly join forces on some huge projects. Iran is in desperate need of investment and a stable trading partner, and India needs cheap oil.
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