U.S. Cuts Global Crude Oil Demand Forecast on Economy

March 10 (Bloomberg) -- The U.S. reduced its forecast for 2009 global crude oil consumption for the sixth month in a row as the economic slowdown cuts fuel purchases.

World oil demand will average 84.27 million barrels a day this year, down 400,030 barrels from a forecast in February, the Energy Department said in its monthly Short-Term Energy Outlook. The estimate is down 1.38 million barrels from demand in 2008, according to the report, released today in Washington.

“The demand outlook is simply being driven by the economy,” said Tancred Lidderdale, a government economist in Washington who supervised the monthly outlook. “The economy keeps getting weaker.”

Global consumption will increase 880,000 barrels a day to an average 85.15 million barrels in 2010, according to the report. That’s down 770,000 barrels from last month’s forecast.

“Next year’s forecast is based on economic recoveries in the past recessions,” Lidderdale said. “The problem is that this recession isn’t much like the ones we’ve seen in recent decades.”

U.S. oil demand will average 19 million barrels a day in 2009, down 420,000 barrels a day from 2008. The forecast was reduced by 20,000 barrels from last month’s report.

West Texas Intermediate crude oil, the U.S. benchmark, will average $42.06 a barrel in 2009, down from $43.14 estimated in February, the report from the department’s Energy Information Administration showed. Oil averaged $99.57 a barrel in 2008, according to the report.

Regular gasoline at the pump, averaged nationwide, will cost $1.96 a gallon this year, up from $1.95 estimated in the February report. The average price last year was $3.26. The fuel will average $2.18 a gallon next year.