Economics At Work....

Higher fuel prices during the first half of the year, had led to... yes, you can guess it, a decrease in demand! So when prices rise, people use less of... Eureka!

World oil demand growth was weaker than expected in the first half of 2006, OPEC has said.

"World oil demand growth in 2006 has been revised down by 0.1 million barrels per day (bpd) since the last MOMR (OPEC monthly report) to stand at 1.2 million bpd, as recent data shows weaker-than-expected demand in the first half of the year," it said in its report for September on world oil markets.

The developing world, according to the article, accounts for 92% of the growth in consumption and demand for oil.