Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) is maintaining its upbeat outlook for the global oil market, keeping its forecasts for demand growth unchanged for both this year and next, according to Bloomberg.

In its monthly report released on December 11, OPEC left its projection for global oil demand growth in 2025 at 1.3 million barrels per day (bbl/d) for an eighth consecutive month, and kept its 2026 growth estimate at 1.4 million bbl/d for a fourth month in a row.

The group said demand will be supported by rising consumption in China, India, the Middle East, and Latin America, with total world demand expected to reach 105.1 million bbl/d in 2025 and 106.5 million bbl/d in 2026.

On the supply side, OPEC raised its forecast for oil output growth from producers outside the OPEC+ alliance in 2025 to around 1 million bbl/d, an upward revision of 50,000 bbl/d from the previous month.

The change reflects seasonal factors and the latest data for the fourth quarter, with the United States, Brazil, Canada, and Argentina expected to drive the increase, while the projection for non-OPEC+ supply growth in 2026 was kept unchanged at 600,000 bbl/d.

The outlook comes after the 40th OPEC+ ministerial meeting last month, which approved a mechanism to review maximum sustainable production capacity as the basis for setting 2027 output levels.

The alliance also renewed its decision to suspend production increases during the first quarter while retaining the option to gradually unwind 1.65 million barrels per day of cuts, in whole or in part, depending on market conditions.

OPEC+ had effectively begun phasing out a separate tranche of voluntary cuts of 2.2 million bbl/d, implemented by eight countries since 2023, by raising production by 547,000 bbl/d in August.

Saudi Energy Minister Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman said earlier this month that the new agreement rewards producers that continue to invest and believe in global demand growth, putting the alliance in an “advanced position” among suppliers and supporting market stability, Bloomberg reported.

Brent crude was trading below $62  a barrel on December 11, with the global benchmark down about 17% since the start of the year, according to Bloomberg data.