S. Korea ranks 8th in world energy consumption

South Korea ranked eighth worldwide in terms of energy consumption last year, up one notch from the previous year, a report released by a British oil firm said Wednesday.  According to the "Statistical Review of World Energy" for 2010 by BP Plc., South Korea consumed 2.1 percent of the world's total energy in 2010. China was the biggest energy consumer in the world, accounting for 20.3 percent of last year's total energy use, pushing down the United States with 19 percent to second place. China's energy consumption surged 11.2 percent from 2009, while the U.S. marked a 3.7 percent increase, the report added. In the oil market, the U.S. was the biggest oil buyer in the world with a 21.1 percent share, according to the report. China consumed 10.6 percent of the world's oil, while accounting for nearly half of the world's coal use. South Korea came in eighth place in world oil consumption, accounting for 2.5 percent, according to the report.