The unrelenting rise in inter­national oil prices, to record nominal highs on Wednesday, has thrown into relief the prospect of a looming energy crisis. The International Energy Agency’s annual energy outlook sounds the alarm, warning that without immediate steps to cut energy use and huge investment by oil producers, a supply-side crunch is a real possibility.

The biggest contributors to a surging rise in energy demand over the next two decades, says the IEA, will be China and India, the future engines of the global economy.