Top oil exporter Saudi Arabia said on Monday that the impact of a deadly coronavirus epidemic on oil demand was "extremely limited" but that the kingdom was closely following events. But the outbreak's impact "on the global demand for oil is extremely limited," Energy Minister Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman said in a statement cited by the SPA state news agency. Prince Abdulaziz recalled that the 2003 outbreak of Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) did not push down demand for oil. He said Saudi Arabia was "closely watching" developments in oil markets, the global economy and that of China, a major buyer of Saudi crude. "The kingdom and the OPEC+ alliance (of oil exporters) have the capability and the flexibility to respond to any changes... to support the stability of the oil markets if needed," he said.

Source: Punch January 27, 2020 12:33 UTC