HIBAPRESS – Agencies
Bloomberg revealed today, Saturday, that the world has depleted oil reserves at a record pace with the impact of the war in Iran on the flow of supplies from the Gulf, especially through the Strait of Hormuz.
Morgan Stanley estimates that the world has lost about a billion barrels of supply in record time, with daily withdrawals from reserves reaching 4.8 million barrels between March 1 and April 25. This sharp erosion not only threatens to raise prices, but also puts industries and governments in front of very narrow options to secure basic needs, especially with the reserves in the countries of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development reaching operational stress levels. The major concerns are highlighted by what financial institutions such as JP Morgan describe as the minimum operating level, which does not actually mean the exhaustion of oil, but means reaching low levels that prevent pipelines, ports and storage tanks from working technically correctly. The world is expected to hit this operational bottom by next September if shipping through the Strait is not resumed. Some indicators suggest a slowdown in withdrawals recently due to weak demand in China, but global stocks are approaching their lowest levels since 2018. Geographically, warning lights are flaring in Asia, where countries that rely entirely on imports, such as Pakistan, Indonesia, and the Philippines, face the risk of running out of fuel within a few weeks. As for Europe, jet fuel reserves in major storage centers such as Amsterdam and Rotterdam have fallen to their lowest levels in six years, threatening to paralyze air traffic coinciding with the summer holiday season. Even the United States, which is seen as the last resort supplier, has not escaped the crisis, as its strategic reserves have fallen to their lowest level since 1982, while diesel stocks have fallen to historic lows not seen since 2005.
