The Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) has further curtailed its expectations for the rebound of world oil demand in 2021, according to Reuters.

This further reduction is due to the continual rise in coronavirus cases, the company affirmed. This will add to further complications to headwinds faced by the group and its allies in balancing the market.

Demand will rise by 6.54 million barrels per day (mmbbl/d) next year to 96.84 mmbbl/d, OPEC said in a monthly report. The growth forecast is 80,000 bbl/d less than last month’s predictions.

This could have the undesirable impact of squandering plans to taper oil production cuts in 2021, however, no decision has been taken on this issue yet.

OPEC has continually lowered its demand growth forecast from 7 mmbbl/d in July. The group has also cut its estimate of world oil demand in the current quarter by 220,000 bbl/d. It left its estimate of the scale of this year’s historic contraction in oil use steady at 9.47 mmbbl/d.