Industry Odisha Bureau, June18: The International Energy Agency (IEA) has reportedly revealed that the oil inventories held by member countries of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) fell further in May to their lowest level since 1990.
The IEA has also reported that “the cumulative drawdown since the beginning of the West Asia conflict has reached 163 million barrels across the OECD nations.”
In its remarks, the IEA has reportedly stated, “Despite the significant reductions in demand for crude oil and refined products, the buffers in the system continue to erode at a record pace.”
It has also been reported that “IEA coordinated the release of 400 million barrels of emergency oil stocks into the global market in a bid to counter soaring oil prices caused by Iran’s effective closure of the Strait of Hormuz. Out of the 400 million barrels, 252 million barrels had already been released as of June 12, 2026, while the remaining volumes are expected to be released gradually.”
On one hand, the IEA has reportedly estimated that the “global oil demand will decline by 1.1 million barrels per day (mb/d) compared to the 2025 levels due to high energy costs, transportation expenses, and broader economic uncertainty,” while on the other hand, the IEA has reportedly expected that the global oil demand growth would recover in 2027 as the market conditions would get normalised.”
