Virus Curbs in Southeast Asia Threaten Oil Demand Recovery
- Indonesian daily traffic levels down 21% this month from June
- Mobility curbs hitting refiners struggling with weak margins
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The fast-spreading delta virus variant is on the march through a largely unvaccinated Southeast Asia, forcing restrictions on work and mobility that are taking the shine off the wider region’s recovery in energy demand.
Indonesia, Southeast Asia’s biggest economy, is being wracked by a particularly brutal wave of Covid-19, with movement curbed in the industrial heartland of Java and the tourist enclave of Bali. Malaysia is still in the midst of a nationwide lockdown, while Thailand has just stepped up restrictions.