Global oil demand roared back in 2021 as the world began to recover from the coronavirus pandemic, and overall world consumption could potentially hit a new record in 2022 — despite efforts to bring down fossil fuel consumption to mitigate climate change.
Gasoline and diesel use surged this year as consumers resumed travel and business activity picked up. For 2022, crude consumption is expected to reach 99.53 million barrels per day (bpd), up from 96.2 million bpd this year, according to the International Energy Agency. That would be a hair short of 2019's daily consumption of 99.55 million barrels.
That will put pressure on both OPEC and the U.S. shale industry to meet demand — after a year when major producers were surprised by the rebound in activity that overwhelmed supply and led to tight inventories worldwide. Numerous OPEC nations have struggled to add to output, while the U.S. shale industry has to deal with investor demands to hold the line on spending.