Shale Gas Costing 2/3 Less Than OPEC Oil Converges With U.S. US demand for oil grew by more than China’s last year for the first time since 1999 according to the International Energy Agency, in a startling indication of how abundant energy supplies are driving an economic resurgence in the US. The IEA – the rich world’s energy club whose forecasts are the gold standard for the energy market – said US oil demand grew by 390,000 barrels a day or 2 per cent last year, reversing years of steady decline. Chinese demand grew by 295,000 b/d, the weakest in at least six years. Oil demand figures are closely followed as indicators of economic growth, because use of fuels such as gasoline and diesel indicate the strength of industrial and consumer activity. As China’s economy has boomed over the past decade its oil demand has surged, while US consumption […]