A fresh wave of seasonal oil demand is expected to be unleashed when the global refining capacity increases to 101.8 million barrels per day (mb/d) in August, compared to 97.25 mb/d in March, according to data on Thomson Reuters Eikon. Though the current rally in oil is primarily due to supply outages, the seasonal demand may also increase oil prices. The expected demand increase of 4.55 mb/d in a matter of six months comes at a time when production is dropping, causing the refineries to compete with each other to grab a portion of the available oil production, which is likely to limit the slide in oil. Various reports forecast that the global crude refining capacity will witness strong growth in the next five years. China, Southeast Asia, Latin America and the Middle East will lead the refinery growth. The most conservative report predicts a 9.4 mb/d addition in […]